Dreaming by Day
by Wallthorn
Summary: Cities are disappearing, Jericho returns to Jump City with a dark secret and a dream-wandering girlfriend, and the Titans are losing their hold on reality. They had learned a lesson in Titans Together, but was it meant to be forever? COMPLETE
1. Prologue: Awakening

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Teen Titans. I do, however, own the OCs.**

**_"It's exhilarating to be alive in a time of awakening consciousness; it can also be confusing, disorienting, and painful."_**

**_~Adrienne Rich  
_**

**Prologue: Awakening**

_How had it come to this? He asked himself this over and over, but no specific answer came. Instead there was a giant pile of small things that added up without his notice. No, that wasn't entirely true; he had noticed them, but he had always counted on the naive belief that no matter what the team would survive and always be there for each other._

First it was simply dark. There was no sound, no light, no feeling, just darkness and a faint awareness of being. Emotions, senses, all things that made life, well, _life_, became less than a memory. Reality was unreal. And for a moment, nothing existed.

_But then, how could he have known? No matter what, they had always been there. Every time someone was lost they were always found again._

Abruptly a pulse shattered the tranquility of nothing and once again there was existence. He gasped, almost enjoying the feeling of his lungs expanding and his own heart beating to keep the blood flowing through his veins. Muscle, skin, bones, nerves, all were renewed. He had been reborn.

_How was it that at the height of their career and fame that they drifted so far? Did friendships usually strain and then blow all at once like that? Too many unanswerable questions. Too much looking back. The only question should be: How could he fix this mess?_

Emotions, meanings, and sensations raced through his mind as if it were checking to make sure nothing was lost. He flexed, stretching every muscle he had just to see if it were still there and to feel the cloth over his skin. Reflexively his hands went to the belt around his waist, his mind automatically naming each and every device stored there.

_Or should he be asking "Can it be fixed?"_

His renewed hearing was suddenly filled with a low, sweet but sad music. _Flute,_ he identified. He turned to find the source just as a wave of blue light pulsed. It briefly illuminated a girl in the center who clothes made her seem like a living embodiment of the shadows. Her flute glittered in the light while pale fingers rose and fell elegantly across the silver keys. These were the only indication that she was alive.

_She was the cause, he was certain. It began when she appeared. No, that wasn't right either! It had begun before her, but somehow she was the one that ended it. They would have been fine if she hadn't shown up. They always had been._

She opened her eyes and their gazes locked.

_It could only have been her._

And finally memories returned. His life was spread before him. Every moment of triumph, every failure, every tragedy, every moment that was his past was relived in an impossibly short period of time.

_No, a deeper part of him lamented, an unrelated person could not have caused all this. He could no longer run from the truth, he could not keep dumping his mistakes on others. She was the phenomenon that marked the beginning of the end, not the reason behind it._

Another wave of the blue light pulsed, outlining the surrounding objects. A bare, flat floor and a curving wall is what it added up to. Nothing more. Nothing except…

_He was the one that allowed it to happen. Only he and no one else. The fall was inevitable, everyone knew that, but it was his fault that it fell like this._

…them. They were all there, surrounding him. His team. His friends. His love, career, life.

_Cyborg, Raven, Starfire, Beastboy, and the other hundreds of friends he had made in their cut short career. They were Titans. They were friends forever. They would stay together and fight as a team forever. That was the promise they had all made at one point. It was their dream, his dream._

But they were not as he remembered them. They were not the friends he knew, not the teammates he worked with, not those whose lives he saved and in turn saved his. They could be. These people looked at him with hate, anger, and disgust. The atmosphere was charged with it. This was not his team. This was not his family. At least, not anymore.

Finally his memories were complete, and now he remembered why this was.

_It was a fool's dream._


	2. Chapter 1: The Last Dying Ray

**Disclaimer: See Prologue.**

_**"Here, like everywhere else, laughing and singing, dancing and dreaming are not exactly the whole of reality; and for one ray of sun shining on the hut, the rest of the village remains in the dark." **_  
_** ~Simone Schwarz-Bart  
**_

**Chapter 1: The Last Dying Ray**

"Enough!" Robin slammed his fists down on the table. Raven, Cyborg, and Beast Boy all stopped mid-shout to glare at him. "I've had enough. We've all had enough."

"But he-"

"Stop, guys, just stop. Everyone needs to calm down, and then we can talk this out."

There was a pause. Everyone took a deep breath. _Good, maybe we'll finally get-_

Then they started yelling their stories again.

"That stupid green idiot burned…"

"If she hadn't crushed the remote…"

"Then he wouldn't change the channel!"

_Damn it._

"Guys."

"Now he won't admit he's wrong!"

"She didn't even let me finish my sentence!"

"They won't shut up!"

"Guys!"

They stopped again, looking at him impatiently.

"Is there any way we can just drop it?"

They eyed each other for a moment, then looked back at him.

"No!"

"Well, I tried," he muttered, knowing they couldn't hear him under their shouting. His room, he needed to get to his room. They would figure it out. The arguing wasn't new, anyway.

* * *

Robin was jolted out of his deep concentration by a knock. Sighing, he put down the gadget he was working on.

"Come in," he said reluctantly.

"Friend Robin?"

He relaxed. "Oh, it's only you Star. I thought you might be Cyborg or Beast Boy coming to complain to the leader again."

"They have been fighting very much," Starfire said hesitantly, edging her way into the room, "It is not very friend-like."

Standing, he gestured for her to take the empty seat. "I know. It doesn't help that they've destroyed every gaming system in the tower. Now they have nothing to take out their competitiveness on."

She sat, her brilliant green eyes following him around the room. "There also have been no missions as of late. Everyone is… restless as well."

"Yeah. Come to think of it, we haven't left the tower in a few weeks at least."

"Maybe we should go to the city. For fun."

Robin stopped. A slow smile spread across his face. "That's a great idea, Star. I can't believe nobody has thought of it yet."

"There is a rave tonight," she blurted hastily.

"Perfect! Loud music and dancing will definitely help everyone unwind." He pulled her into a quick hug, then ushered her to the door. "I have to work on something. Could you do me a favor and not mention this to the rest of the Titans? I want it to be a surprise."

"I-"

"Thank again, Star!"

He barely registered her shoulder slump as he shut the door.

"All right, Robin, why'd you call an emergency meeting?" Cyborg asked as soon as Robin walked in. He was standing in between Beast boy and Raven, and he didn't look happy about it. Starfire was lying on the couch, as if drained of energy.

"This better be good. I don't want to be in the same room as _her_ for much longer." BB said. Raven shot him a glare.

"Dealing with your wet dog smell isn't exactly my idea of pleasant, either."

"Guys, if we could stop the bickering for a moment, I have an announcement to make." To his surprise, they did. "Now, as you all know, tension has been running a little high."

This was met with a group snort from everyone except Star.

"I know, I know, understatement, right? Well, I've let that run too long and I'm sorry. As a leader, I shouldn't have left you guys at each other's throats."

Silence. They were waiting for something. They knew something was coming.

"So, as an apology, we're going out tonight."

With that, he tossed a pair of rings at each of them. He watched, with growing satisfaction, as they processed what they each held in their hands. Their reactions were perfect.

"Oh my god. Are these what I think they are? They are, aren't they?"

"Yes! I can't believe you made more!" Cyborg put on his rings and activated them. Instantly his mechanical parts were covered by an illusion of normal, human features. Beast Boy followed suit, and he, too, looked like a normal teenage boy.

Robin finally let the grin he was suppressing break out across his face as he watched Beast Boy and Cyborg hop around. Raven was a little more down to earth.

"What are you planning?"

"Well, Star suggested we go to the rave-"

He was interrupted a very loud whoop.

"Yeah, man! A night on the town!"

"The dancing!"

"The girls!"

"You'll need to change out of your uniforms," Robin said, "And hurry. The rave begins soon and I'd like to get through the line before it's over."

"Already on it!"

"Don't be so satisfied," Raven said from behind him, in a tone that immediately dampened his spirit.

"What do you mean?"

"You solved your problems by using Starfire's date."

A few seconds ticked by as Robin made the connections. "Do you know for sure?"

She rolled her eyes. "One, I'm an empath, and two, I'm the only other female in this tower. She tells me a lot of things."

"Damn it."

"You have a lot of making up to do, Boy Wonder."

* * *

The rave was packed. While it was more than tempting to just immediately lose himself in the mass of writhing bodies, Robin knew he had other business to take care of first.

He found her on the roof. Her rings hadn't changed her appearance much, just toning down the hue of her skin to a more human tan.

"Kory."

She jumped, but when she registered who it was she immediately tried to put on a positive expression. "Oh, Friend Ro- I mean, Dick. Good evening. I was just- just enjoying-"

"The view of the convenience store across the highway?" he finished with a slight smile.

"No, I-"

"Kory." He whispered her name this time, gently. "I sorry, I should have paid more attention to what you were asking. I didn't mean to take your night out and use it to fix my mistakes."

Her eyes widened. "No, friend R- Dick, you-"

"Shh, it was nonchalant of me and as your friend and leader that is inexcusable. I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you, okay?"

"I- I cannot…"

He took her hands in his own, gently pulling her to him. "Just say yes. Please?"

Her gaze became steady. "Yes."

And then she leaned in to close the distance.

* * *

He was happy when they rejoined the crowd downstairs. He really, truly, was happy. From the looks of it, so was his team. It barely took a beat for him and Star to melt into the crowd.

The rest of the night was a blur of darkness, neon flashes, and laughter.

It was time to relax. To let go. A sense of relief, however temporary, was seized. For now, all issues melted into the overpowering energy of the dance music. All arguments were dissipated in the darkness of the room, and, for now, all responsibility forgotten.

For now.

* * *

Hundreds of miles away another form of music was playing. Gentle, hypnotic music. A lullaby of sorts. It enveloped the city of New York, ensnaring its residents, and effectively putting the city that never sleeps to sleep.


	3. Chapter 2: The Anomaly of New York

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.**

_**"As only New Yorkers know, if you can get through the twilight, you'll live through the night."  
**_

_**~Dorothy Parker**_

**Chapter 2: The Anomaly of New York**

Gotham City was silent, static. High above the empty streets, Bruce Wayne stood in his dark office, observing the city below him. This sudden quiet set him on edge.

Less than a week ago the streets had rung with gunshots and police sirens. The bat symbol didn't leave the sky until the early hours of the morning, only to be relit at dusk. The Joker was finally back in Arkham, but his minions where left with no leader and a final order: "Do what you want."

The clean-up was, optimistically, predicted to take at least a month. He knew from experience that it would take two to catch the bulk, and nearly a year before he could say that almost all of them were off the streets.

But now his city was still, unsuspicious, like a live wire. The sky was clear. Bruce couldn't sleep.

His ears pricked up. Through the silence, a strange melody drifted. It sounded like a slight breeze at first, but as it glided closer he could tell that it wasn't. Something about its tone was slightly off… It was gone before he could place what it was.

His cell phone rang. "What is it, Alfred?"

"Sir, it appears you have a message waiting in the Batcave."

* * *

Robin stared at the blaring report blearily for a moment before their meaning dawned on him. His team was awake, barely, slumped over the kitchen counter, eying the toaster blankly. He had only sat down for a minute to make sure all was right with the world and he could go collapse on his bed. But now the world was clear and it was back to business.

"Guys, you need to see this."

Cyborg groaned. "We've been up all night, Rob. The only reason I'm moving is because I'm hungry."

"This is really important." His tone got their attention, but not much more.

"New York city has disappeared."

Out of the corner of his eye, Robin saw Cyborg straighten and BB's ears twitch. Raven floated into view on his left.

"What do you mean by disappeared?" Raven asked.

Robin sat back in his chair. "No one knows. There's been no communication or transmissions from their phones, broadcasting stations, or anything else. No planes departing from New York have been recorded arriving or even taking off; all planes that went to New York haven't been heard from since arrival. Nothing. Just a black hole and white noise."

"Have they tried satellite images?" Cyborg asked as he sat down at his station.

"Everything is in place, but no sign of life."

"How? Even if it were a fast-acting virus or noxious gas there would still be emergency transmissions. Blackouts could explain some things, but not all."

Several clicks in a few seconds, and Cyborg was in. "Not to mention the power grid shows no sign of tampering or reason for failure. Not at this scale anyway."

From the kitchen, Beastboy sighed as he plunked more waffles in the toaster. It was going to be a long day.

Hours later, Robin sat back from his screen, equally baffled and frustrated. He glanced around. Cyborg was staring at his screen, eyes glazed over from sleep deprivation and shared frustration. Robin couldn't tell if Raven was meditating or sleeping. Both Starfire and BB were on the couch, nodding off while trying to stay alert.

"Guys, we need to get some sleep."

"No arguments here."

"I'm out."

"I suppose…"

Starfire placed her hands on his shoulders. "You are included in this "we," right, boyfriend Robin?"

Robin continued to stare at his screen. A small flashing icon had just caught his attention.

"Robin?"

Her voice broke his tired stream of thought. "Yeah. yeah. I'll go to bed in a minute. I just need to put our security monitors on alert mode."

"Okay…" He heard the doubt in her voice, but she flew off anyway.

He immediately clicked on the incoming call icon. Batman appeared on his screen, framed by the familiar darkness of the Batcave.

"Why have you been ignoring my calls?" he asked sharply.

One sentence in and Robin was already irritated. Not much had changed. "I wasn't ignoring them, I was busy and didn't notice them."

"What have you been doing? Certainly not paying attention to the crisis."

"If you mean the NYC thing, yes, that's what I've been doing."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really."

"Then are you aware that Wonder Woman flew in an hour ago and hasn't been heard from since?"

Robin lost the look of contempt and sat straighter. "Di- Wonder Woman's missing?"

"Yes. The League sent in a team earlier. She was heading it. She flew in alone, had radio feed for five minutes. Then all cut out. We haven't heard from her since. I thought you've been watching this?"

"I'm not exactly in the League's loop. What did she transmit?"

"Mainly how empty New York was. Robin, this isn't why I called."

"Can you send them to me?"

"Robin, your group isn't a part of this investigation."

"What do you mean? An entire city was just cut off, any attempt at entering it causes the same disappearance, and no one knows why yet. I'd say this is an international crisis!"

"Robin!"

Robin sat back from his screen, gritting his teeth.

"I called you to warn you."

"What do you mean?"

"I don't want your team involved. Now, before you protest that you are all competent, I simply mean that I don't want you to become a target."

"What do you mean?"

"We have word on an organization that is controlling a good portion of the media." Robin sat strait. "I'll send you a file on this new organization _if_ you promise not to become involved in New York."

Robin tensed, fists balled.

"Robin." Batman said in his warning tone.

"Fine. I won't encourage my team to become involved in New York if you send me that file and allow my team to look into it."

"This case is going to be difficult, it requires a lot of delicate work. The files should be on your screen now. Read it carefully and be prepared. This one is beyond anything I've seen."

"Right."

Then his stiff features softened. "But, Son."

"Yes?"

"Get some sleep first."

Robin rolled his eyes, but couldn't keep himself from forming a small smile. "Whatever, Dad."

Robin's screen went blank.

* * *

That night, another melody found another city. This one was brittle, bitter with old, forgotten anger. Insults, slights, suppressed annoyance all floating to just under the skin, simmering, waiting for the right moment to bubble to the surface. And while Gotham City slept easy for the first time in weeks, Jump City was suddenly afflicted with restlessness and unease. Its citizens would awake the next morning feeling as if they hadn't slept at all. They would awake from nameless nightmares, forgotten instantly upon realizing the comforting familiarity of their rooms. But a dark shadow loomed at the edge of each of their minds, a shadow that was too distant to really worry anyone. A shadow like an oncoming storm, one they unconsciously hoped would not come to pass.


	4. Chapter 3: The First Dream

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 2.**

"_**Dreaming or awake, we perceive only events that have meaning to us."**_

_**~Jane Roberts**_

**Chapter 3: The First Dream**

_The Flying Graysons were falling. Dick watched, with the blank expression of one who did fully grasp what was going on, as his parents reached out for one last embrace before their final, shattering impact. Their hands never quite met. From the shadows, Tony Zucco's fat face watches, full of false sorrow. _

"Robin."

_It was a disembodied female voice, cool and clear, that cut through his memory. Robin turned away from the scene, a single tear finding its way beneath his mask and down his cheek. He forgot to wipe it away when he saw the utter darkness now in front of him. He glanced back, only to glimpse the colorful circus scene melt into the void. He was standing on a small cube of circus dirt, surrounded by complete nothingness._

"_Who are you? What is this?"_

"This is a test."

"_What am I supposed to do?"_

"What can you do?"

_Robin thought for a moment, then shrugged and walked off his cube._

His first step, against all expectations, was met by ground. It immediately spread, eating away the nothing until he stood on the top of Jump City's highest skyscraper. When the last patch of black was filled, sound kicked in and his city became complete reality.

"Hello, Robin." Her voice was full of laughter. She sat on the edge of the building, dangerously close to falling. Her eyes caught him, dark blue framed by her dark hair, practically glowing with danger. She was thin in a wiry sense, though it was hard to tell with her dark trench coat and pants against the night sky. He approached her cautiously.

"Who are you?"

"I'm a wanderer, a dream wanderer, a world wanderer. There really is no difference." She saw his confused look. "But you probably mean my name. You can call me Mel."

"Okay. Why have you brought me here?"

She studied him. "Hmm, you act just like him. No wonder he thought I was you for a while."

"Who are you talking about?"

She smiled. "He's not important right now." She paused for a moment, looking out at the city. "Well, maybe he is. But it's not time for that yet."

"You haven't answered my question."

"Relax. The fact that you're here means you're the one who's going to help me with my plan." She gestures for him to sit with her on the ledge. "But it isn't time for that, I just wanted to get to know you. You know, as future associates."

He raises an eyebrow, thoroughly confused and a little on edge, but accepts her offer. The city at night sprawls before him, its light glittering off of the bay's surface and giving the impression that night sky was below them. Yet despite the glory his eyes could see, his ears could only pick up the angry sounds of tires screeching and horns blaring, people shouting in the night, the wet crack of knuckle on bone.

"Is your city worrying you, Robin?" She asked after a moment of silence. "Is this not the normal noise of the city?"

_Damn, was it that easy to read me? _"Are you the one Batman warned me against?"

She laughs. "Hardly, though I was in Gotham last night. I had a friend to pick up. Your father is a very nervous man."

"How'd-?"

"I told you, I wander through dreams. There's a lot you can learn from a person that way."

He's silent, determined not to give away anymore of his thoughts.

"Robin," she sighed, "If all you're going to do is sulk, then it's time for you to go. I just wanted to introduce myself before the real fun begins."

"_What?"_ But it was too late, he sank back into his dream.

* * *

"Melody…" he breathed.

"Wake up, lunkhead," Raven's voice cut through his sleep-blurred mind.

"Huh? What is it, Raven?" he groaned as she prodded him.

"You fell asleep at your desk again. Now get up, we're going for coffee."

"Coffee? When was this decided?"

"Four minutes ago when I got tired of watching Beastboy and Cyborg bitch at each other between three second naps."

"Do the others want to go?"

"Does it matter? We're not in any position to be arguing, not with New York gone."

"About that…"

Robin's door slammed open. Cyborg and Beastboy walked in, picked him up, and walked into his closet. Three seconds later, they walked out with a completely normal teenage boy with black hair, blue eyes, and an extremely confused look on his face.

"Let's go."

The city was bustling, rushing almost. It was hard to slow down enough to find a teen-friendly coffee shop without being shoved or yelled at in irritation.

"There's a place over here called the Nook," Raven suggested.

"Naw," Cyborg said, trying to avoid bumping into anyone, "That entire place feels like it's brooding."

"What about the Firecracker?" Starfire asked. Robin noticed she was hugging herself, as if trying to make herself smaller in the crowd. He grabbed her hand, smiling reassuringly.

"Why don't we go to the Bayview Café?" He asked the others. It was a relatively new place that catered to a mixed crowd drawn from the arcade and the used book store on either side.

"Where ever, as long as we get there soon. I think that's the second time some girl in heels has purposely stepped on my feet." Beast Boy said, glaring over his shoulder.

"Right, let's go."

"Here's your coffees, sir." The barista said in short, clipped tones. She had bags under her eyes, so Robin didn't let it bother him.

"Thank you." He walked to their usual table in corner of outdoor section. It was a security habit, choosing the table with best view of their surroundings as well as a noise barrier to protect their conversations. Today, however, the normal city sounds were slightly muted and the surrounding tables seemed more brooding than chipper, his own table included.

Raven snatched a cup from the tray. "How is it possible for you to be in a good mood? You had about as much sleep as the rest of us and definitely more than that barista."

Robin set the tray down quickly before he was attacked by Cyborg and Beast Boy. Grabbing his, he handed Starfire hers with a kiss.

Cyborg groaned. "Not while we're in public, you two."

Robin stuck his tongue out at him. "I'm in a good mood because we have a case development."

They perked up a bit. "On New York?"

"Of course, though the League is still stonewalling us-"

"What? Really? Because an entire city disappearing is nothing of our concern!" Beastboy shouted, attracting the attention from other tables.

Robin eased them down. "I know, I know, let me finish. Batman sent me the case they have on them so far."

There was a momentary pause. "Really, Rob? Batman? Why is he being so cooperative all of a sudden?" Cyborg asked.

"I don't know, but he made me promise to keep out-"

"Is this really the place to be talking about work?" Raven asked loudly.

They stared at her. She nodded to the next table over. Robin almost dropped his cup. It was the girl from his dream last night. She was wearing a dark blue blouse and had her black hair in a spiky bun, but it was definitely her. She was reading the paper on her table while taking a sip of coffee.

"What about her?" He asked, drawing his eyes away.

"She's been glancing at our table since we got here." Raven muttered.

"Hey, is that Jericho?" Beastboy whispers. They turn to spot a familiar curly blonde walking out of the shop with a bottle of water. His wide green eyes had new lines under them and he had definitely lost weight since they had last seen him, but it was unmistakably Jericho. He seemed to be heading towards them.

"Yeah, it is. J-!"

Cyborg wrapped an arm around his mouth and forces him to sit down. "We're in disguise, don't blow it."

Beastboy points. Jericho had sat at the table with the girl in blue. They were signing to each other. She nodded at their table and he followed to spot them. A wide smile broke out across his face, erasing the lines and transforming him back into the overgrown boy he had always been. He waved them over.

Robin glanced back to his team in silent deliberation, where he saw that they unanimously wanted to greet their friend. "Jericho! It's been awhile. How have you been?"

"Oh, what, Dick gets to say it but Garfield doesn't?" Beastboy muttered.

Jericho smiles and signs to the girl, who translates. "He says he's been better, but it's good to see you guys."

"I'm sorry, but who are you?" Cyborg asks smoothly.

"Oh, you can call me Mel. I'm an old friend of Jericho's." She said. Robin's brow furrowed. "So you're the Titans, huh? You look-"

"Dashing?" Cyborg asked.

"Handsome?" Beastboy continued.

"Ordinary. What happened to the flashy costumes?" Jericho was signing desperately fast while trying not to laugh. "It appears he wants me to spare you from my full personality until after you've adjusted a bit. Too bad."

They looked at each other, then everyone started laughing. In the tense air they had been engulfed in for the past few hours, this girl was just too surreal. For a moment, the curtain of dread over the city part, if only for the table of teenagers.

Robin wiped a tear from his eye. "So, what brings you to Jump City?"

The curtain snapped shut. Jericho's face darkened momentarily, causing Mel to look concerned. But it passed, and the boy shrugged it off. "Jericho wanted to show me the city where his friends were."

"Ah." Robin didn't say anymore, aware that his friends now associated him with the awkward silence. Mel picked it up.

"But aside from that, he wanted me in a city that he thinks isn't under threat."

Another shared glance, this time surprised and cautious. "What do you mean by that?" Cyborg asked.

"Well, after the greater part of Tokyo disappeared-"

"Tokyo disappeared?"

She looked surprised. "You guys didn't know? This morning Tokyo fell under the same cut off as New York." She leaned in a bit, conspiratorially. "What do you guys think about it?"

Robin gave her a measured look. "The League is keeping us at a distance for now."

"But we have been looking into it on our own." Cyborg cut in with a pointed look at Robin.

He took it in stride. "Obviously they want us to keep Jump as our top priority, but seeing as our schedule hasn't been too busy, we've been doing what we can."

Beastboy, Jericho, and Starfire were following the three nervously. They seemed to be unable to come up with anything to steer the conversation away from the explosion waiting to happen.

Mel sat back with a sigh. "I suppose what that Kettering woman has been saying is true."

Jericho instantly began trying to sign Mel, and this time they all understood. _Stop, cut it out._ _She doesn't mean anything._

Again, Cyborg asked first. "What do you mean by that?" This time his tone was dangerously low.

Jericho suddenly stood up, rapidly signing to Mel while grabbing her arm. "He wants to go sightseeing now." He began dragging her down the sidewalk. "It was nice meeting you," she called back. "Watch the evening news!"

"I have a bad feeling about this, Robin." Cyborg said as they watched the two disappear into the crowd.

"We should head back to the tower." He replied.

They cleared up their coffee and began to walk back. Beast Boy dropped back a bit. "Are you okay, Raven? You look pale."

Robin looked back and saw it was true. The empathy looked severely disturbed. She caught his gaze, then looked at Beast Boy, seemingly getting a hold of herself. "Yeah. Yeah, I just thought I felt something familiar."

"You gonna be alright there, Rave?" Cyborg asked.

"Yeah, I'll be fine. I think I just need to meditate."

"Right. The faster we get back to the tower, the better. Whatever Mel was referring to, it doesn't sound good."

Beast Boy jogged a few steps to catch up. "I guess, but who would focus on us when two whole cities have disappeared?"

* * *

Chloe Kettering, the glowing green letters identified the women with glossy brown hair and cold blue eyes. She was sitting in one of the fashionable armchairs they reserved for one-on-one feature and analysis discussion. Her interviewer was the quick-witted Diane Rossi, signifying that whoever Chloe was, what she had been saying was both highly controversial and very popular. The Titans had just managed to figure out how to turn on the TV without a remote in time to hear Rossi ask:

"Why debate this now, Chloe?"

"She's on first name terms with Rossi? She must be something." Cyborg muttered, earning shushing noises from everyone else.

Rossi continued. "I understand the general dissatisfaction with the Justice League over how long it's taking them to figure out this crisis in Tokyo and in New York, but why target the teenage superheroes among them?"

The room froze.

Kettering responded, her voice commanding but not quite cold. "Well, Diane, that's just it. The teenage superheroes are not among them. In fact, there are strong indications that the Justice League uses considerable amounts of energy to keep them at a distance."

Tension.

Rossi looked a little annoyed at the suggestion. "What leads you to this conclusion?"

"Well, look at the Teen Titans, for instance. They are arguably the most active group of teenage superheroes running around without a guardian hero."

"And successful." Rossi interjects.

"Right. Yet look at them. They have never in their careers faced a villain that aimed to kill." For whatever inexplicable reason, Kettering choose this moment to break eye contact with Rossi and stare into the camera, effectively making it seem as if she were speaking directly to the Titans. "Not once have they been admitted for serious breaks or fatal wounds, despite the fact that they all show no power for regeneration or shielding. Now, compare that record to the adult heroes, all of whom have more experience. This past year alone, Batman has been reported to have been shot, stabbed, fallen several stories, and worse, the Flash has suffered from several broken bones and a few torn muscles, and the list goes on. So the question is, how do these teens go two and a half years without so much as a broken bone?"

"That may be, but this is all speculative."

"That's true, Diane. But there is more to it than this anomaly. As you know, I'm part of an organization of investigative journalists who specialize in superheroes." Rossi nods curtly. "Well, for the past two years, there has been a surprising amount of references back to Jump City and its known villains in Justice League reports, particularly from Batman."

She continues, but the world tunes out for Robin. His team is staring at him with wide eyes.

"I can't watch anymore of this." He says, and leaves the room.

The sun sinks beyond the horizon, leeching the red and orange from the sky and leaving behind only dark blue and rapidly fading violet. His city is ominously silent across the bay, as if every household is watching the same report his team is, sitting in the same silent shock as he is. He hears the door open, and the familiar whoosh Starfire makes when she flies.

"Robin, are you doing well?"

"Yes." He answers quickly, coldly. "I mean, no. I don't know."

She is silent, waiting for him to speak again.

"He's my father! I want to deny what that Kettering woman is saying, but this is exactly the kind of obsessive, overprotecting action he would take! So I don't know."

He slumps, head in hands. She sits next to him, a warm hand on his back. "He is your father, yes? Maybe it is in him to worry about you, but the Kettering woman didn't say what his reports were about. She didn't say they were reports of a controlling nature."

"No, you're right, Star. It was implied." He perked up a bit. "I guess I overreacted to her words. But I can guarantee that if this is how I reacted, than the rest of the city must-"

Something caught him midsentence. A noise, no, music. Low, gentle tones rose above from the city, wafting around him, causing a sudden itch to find its source to arise within him.

"Robin?"

"Do you hear that, Star?"

"I do not hear anything." She was looking at him, worried.

He stood up and turned to the city. "It's coming from there. It sounds like," he thought for a moment, "running, and flying."

She looked at the city, then back at Robin, now clearly confused and very worried. "There is no music."

Robin listened for a minute. He could hear it clearly, calling for him to own the skyscraper tops like he did in Gotham so long ago. But he knew better than to say so. She was already worried. "I guess it was just the wind. Come on, we have a file to read."


	5. Chapter 4: Drawn In

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 3.**

**_"It's funny, in a human kind of way, how we can convinces ourselves that we're in control at the very moment we are beginning to lose it." _  
_ ~William C. Moyers_  
**

**Chapter 4: Drawn In**

The music was coming from one of the skyscrapers, of that he was sure. One of the taller ones, meaning he was in for a climb. He was on one in an instant, trying for the life of him to hold back the tide of memories this music was drawing out.

This music sounded like running, and, for reasons beyond him, like a song Joseph had sung at one of the few recitals he had been able to attend.

Joseph, who back then had the purest voice to match his angelic appearance.

Whose father couldn't protect that voice to save his pride.

"AAARGH," he shouted into the night. He was almost to the top. In his mind, he could see himself swinging over the edge and destroying whatever it was that dared stir up these memories.

But he didn't need to. As soon as he was over, she stopped. The girl was sitting against the railing, a silver flute pressed against her lips. As soon as she heard him, the flute dropped to her lap and she was looking at him with her large dark blue eyes. "Oh good, you can hear my call."

"You." He said, desperately trying to mask the anger in his voice. "How do you know that song?"

"This song?" She raised the flute.

"Don't."

"Relax, I wasn't going to. It's a summoning song, one of those rare songs that sound different to everyone who hears. This one is only heard by those whom I want to hear." She was watching him closely now. "So you are Slade?"

His eyes narrow. "Yes. Why is it you wanted me here?"

"Because you are necessary to my plan."

"Your plan?"

"Yes. I came to this world for a reason, and that reason manifested into a plan."

"What does that mean?"

"I came here to steal the dreams of everyone on earth."

She said this brightly, like a young child informing her father that she was going to bake a cake. "This is of no interest to me. So why am I here?"

"I told you, you're part of my plan."

"Your plan?"

"I suppose you need a little more in order to understand." She jumped from her rail and landed in front of him, raising the flute to her lips. No notes came out, nothing happened despite her moving fingers. Then, one by one, the buildings around them went out. Her flute began to glow blue, and from each window a blue-white mist was sucked out. The area around them was dead still.

It reminded him of something he had seen earlier today. "This is exactly like New York." He breathed. "You did that?"

She stopped. "So you've seen New York? Yes. I did that. That's what a dreamless city looks like."

Slade stepped back. This isn't something he could fight. Her power was intangible, and, at the moment, he had no way of protecting himself from it. "Now that your cards are on the table, what do you propose I do?"

"There's no need to get defensive. I won't do anything to you, though I should put this place back. I don't need Jump City yet." She placed the flute back to her lips. It was like watching a tape in rewind: everything reversed exactly as it had proceeded. The lights were restored.

"So am I correct in assuming you're releasing me?"

She studied him. "Yeah. I think you know what you need to do."

Slade was gone before she finished her sentence. "Is he always this impatient?"

Jericho appeared from the shadows, his expression dark and conflicted. He nodded.

* * *

"…the truth is," the giant image of Chloe Kettering said with a little too much vigor, "they have no purpose except to be trained to take over for their predecessors. So why use a high risk method such as releasing them on their own?"

It was the second day, and it had become clear that Kettering was taken very seriously by the nation now. Cyborg was the only one watching. Raven was in her room, presumably meditating. Beastboy was now attempting to piece together the shattered remote with little success. Starfire was leaning over Robin's shoulder as he worked through the files Batman had sent him. Yet, despite appearances, they were all well aware of her words.

"Look at the situation now. First New York, then Tokyo, and now Dubai. The list of disappearing cities is growing, and we have yet to hear what is causing it and why from the Justice League. They shouldn't have to waste their precious energy babysitting their sidekicks."

"Can you please turn that off?" Robin asked, finally breaking. "Or change the channel? I'm trying to concentrate."

"On those reports? Robin, what are we going to do with them? Our real priority should be Kettering. She's trashing us!"

"Our job is to protect Jump City. We will do that job regardless of the opinions of one newscaster."

"That's a nice little speech, Robin, but it isn't just her opinion. She has her own little crowd jumping for our throats."

"Uh, guys," Beastboy said, "not to interrupt, but our alarm has been going off for the past three minutes."

"You know, in all the fuss over New York and Kettering, I forgot bad guys existed." Cyborg said as they raced through the city streets.

"It doesn't help that they've been out of sight for the better part of the last month." Raven said.

"Maybe they have been vacationing." Starfire said.

"Man, they better not have been." Beastboy said. "We don't even get to do that."

The warehouses here had high cement walls topped with barbed wire. "Don't these guys know that this stuff never works on bad guys?" Beast Boy asks.

Robin continues to scan around. "Actually, it works on the normal bad guys. We're here for the rest." A crash resounds from one of the warehouses. "There. Titans, Go!"

The courtyard is empty, though a gaping hole in one of the walls reveals the source of the noise. What caused it remained a mystery.

"Why is it so quiet?" Raven said, looking around.

Cyborg squints. "I don't know, my scanner is being interfered with."

"I don't like it." Robin says. But he doesn't move. Better to wait for their first strike.

Sure enough, it comes. In a blink, they're surrounded by black droids with silver-clawed hands. A figure moves out of the gap. "Oh, it's you guys. Yeah, I thought you might show. Figures, I guess Jump hasn't changed much after all."

"Red X." Robin said through clenched teeth. "What's a Wayne Enterprise dump house hold for you?"

"Plenty of things people are willing to pay a lot of money to get a hold of, _if_ you know the right people." He stops ten feet away, his head tilted playfully. "Incidentally, did you miss me while I was away?"

"So they were on vacation!" Beast Boy shouted.

X laughs. "Oh, no. There's no rest for the wicked. I guess you wouldn't have heard since you aren't thieves, but Jump City's been a no go for the past month and a half."

"What?" Robin asked, eyeing the increasing number of droids surrounding them.

"Well, I can't give away too much trade secrets, but basically there's been a crime embargo on Jump. But really all you need to know is that it's been lifted." X said. He gestured at them, the droids attacked. "Anyway, enjoy my parting gift."

By the time the dust settled and the droids taken care of, X was gone.

"He got away." Cyborg said, "I don't believe it, our first bust in weeks, and he got away!"

"It doesn't look like he took anything, though." Raven said, floating by the gap. "This warehouse is for by-products, and nothing seems out of place."

"If he was not interested in the taking, why did he commit the breaking?" Starfire asked.

"It was a warning." Robin said. "He was telling us that whatever was keeping villains from targeting Jump is gone. We're about to become very busy."

"I'm more concerned about what was keeping them away in the first place." Cyborg said. "What if Kettering was right? What if the JLA does control our crime rate?"

Robin opened his mouth, but Raven beat him to it. "No, just think about what you're saying. If the JLA could control supervillains, none of us would ever be needed. It must have been something else, like the Black Market."

"But why cut off Jump specifically?"

"You're letting that crazy Kettering get to you, Cy." Beastboy said. "No one really listens to her, anyway."

"I'm just saying, maybe someone pulled some strings and intimidated-"

"Just come out and say, Cyborg." Robin said, his voice simmering. "You think Batman cut us off."

There was a moment of silence as Raven, Starfire, and Beast Boy took cover.

"Well, it makes sense, Rob. Maybe you need to set aside your personal feelings to look at this clearly."

Robin felt the anger boiling inside, trying to get out. He took a few breaths. "Fine, think what you want, but I know better." No response. "I'm heading back to the tower."

No one stopped him. He could hear Beastboy ask Cyborg after he thought Robin was far enough away. "You don't actually think that, do you?"

"I don't know what to think anymore, BB. But honestly, I can't find another explanation that fits."

And though Robin didn't want to admit it, neither did he.

* * *

Unknown to them, Slade stared down from a nearby building.

"What do you say?" Mel asked from behind, "Now that you have a better idea of what I'm capable of?"

Red X dropped down. "They didn't track me? Good. I'm never sure with Robin around." He walks up to Mel. "So, how'd I do?"

"If Robin weren't so unsettled by the fact that your droids were knock-offs of mine, you would have never made it out without a chase." Slade said.

"I wasn't asking you, gramps."

"Take into consideration that Robin destroyed half of your ensemble," Slade continued, ignoring him, "I think it's safe to say that he was caught in a deep rage for a moment, allowing you to disappear. If it weren't for that little psychological snap, he would have spotted that little maneuver you pulled to get away. You have a lot to learn."

X's eyes narrowed, and Mel shrugged. "It's true, but don't worry, you pulled it off."

"Great, now about that date-" X was cut off by a hand on his shoulder. Jericho shook his head. "And you are?" Jericho shook his head again, motioning for X to leave. "Look, buddy, I'm talking with the girl-"

At which point Jericho swept his legs from under him and punched him to the next roof. Slade whipped around, but Jericho had already disappeared. "Who was just here?"

"A friend." She said, trying very hard not to laugh. "Are you in?"

"I don't trust you."

"Fair enough. I don't think I need your trust."

"Why would you want me?"

"You answered the call."

"Is that all you're going to tell me?"

"Well, yeah. You'll find out the real reason soon enough, anyway." She began to melt into the night. "Have a little patience, Slade."

* * *

**Author's Note: This must have been one I wrote at 3AM, because otherwise I don't think I would have Mel smiling every two seconds.**


	6. Chapter 5: Foreshock

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 4.**

_**"Friendship- my definition- is built on two things. Respect and trust. Both elements have to be there. And it has to be mutual. You can have respect for someone, but if you don't have trust, the friendship will crumble."**_

_**~Stieg Larsson**_

**Chapter 5: Foreshock**

The tower turned out to be too stifling, especially when his team came back. As soon as they entered, he was on his way to the roof.

"We're back, boyfriend Robin." Starfire sang, just barely catching his back.

"I'm going out for some air." He said shortly. He would have felt bad, but honestly if it weren't for Star he would have said nothing at all. This wasn't so much out of anger at Cyborg for suggesting what he had been thinking all along as it was out of irritation at the swirling chaos that was his mind.

On the roof he took a breath of sea breeze, staring at the stars peeking through some evening mist. The fog was thick tonight, he could barely make out the glow of the city. There were so many things happening that he couldn't quite grasp them all. Faces began floating in the mist: Mel, Batman, Cyborg. Images of New York and Tokyo. A glint of Wonder Woman's tiara. A snatch of the music he had heard last night.

"Come to sort your thoughts, Robin?"

Robin whirled around. "What are you doing here, Slade?"

"I've been searching for you all day. I have a question to ask you. Have you heard any flute music lately?" A mixture of emotions play across Robin's face. "I take it you have."

"So you hear it too?"

"Yes, Robin, rest assured you aren't the only one."

"From you, this isn't exactly reassuring."

"Tell me, Robin, have you ever followed it to the source?"

"Sort of. In a dream."

"And you met the girl?"

"Yes."

It was clear that Slade had wanted a more detailed answer, but it was also clear that Robin wasn't exactly going to cooperate. "I see." Slade says after a moment. "What did she say to you?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because I'm willing to bet that she told me a lot more than she told you."

"Why should I trust you?"

Slade sighed. "From your relaxed shoulders and straight stance, it appears that you already do. What's the matter, Robin? It must be nice to have someone who believes you about the sounds in your head."

"Don't take it the wrong way, Slade. I just don't feel the need to be on guard around you anymore."

Robin's taunt didn't phase him. "On any other day, I would take you up on that offer. Unfortunately, I came here on other business," the tower's alarm starts off under them, "and it appears my time has run short." He places a hand on Robin's shoulders. "Listen carefully, Robin, the girl with the flute has no qualms about taking out an entire city. Or three."

"Robin!" Cyborg called from the other side of roof. In the corner of his eye, he could see the shapes of his team through the mist. He ignored them.

Robin's eyes narrowed. "Why are you telling me this, Slade?"

"Let's just say that I'm protecting an investment."

"Unhand him!" Starfire shouted.

"It appears your friends don't care for my company." He released Robin and stepped back, narrowly avoiding a green flash. "We'll have to finish this conversation another time. I look forward to your thoughts on the matter."

He was gone.

"He didn't do anything to you, did he?" Cyborg asked.

Robin continued to stare at the spot where Slade's mask had been. "He was warning me."

"What? No way." Beastboy said. "When has Slade ever warned us?" Robin raised an eyebrow as Raven suddenly looked down. "Well, uh, besides with that whole Trigon incident…"

"Are you sure there isn't something you aren't telling us?" Cyborg said.

"He said he had a lead on what was going on in New York."

"And?"

"That it somehow tied to Mel."

"To Mel?" Beastboy said. "You mean Jericho's girl? What does she have to do with anything?"

Cyborg maintained an even tone. "And that's it?"

"Yes, Cyborg. Why are you pressing this all of a sudden?"

"Well, if Slade's involved, how you've been acting lately makes a whole lot more sense."

"Look, Slade doesn't have me under his thumb, he hasn't threatened me, and, for all I know, tonight was his first night back in Jump. He just appeared, okay?"

"At the same time you were on the roof alone? That's mighty convenient, Rob."

"Face it, Robin, whenever Slade's involved you go a little insane." Beastboy said.

"And you don't have the greatest track record when it comes to being completely honest with us when Slade shows up." Raven said.

The frustration finally boiled into anger. "Fine, you know what? Mel has visited me in a dream and told me that she's planning something that I play a role in. She also plays a melody with her flute that only Slade and I can hear, and she told him that she's responsible for what's going on in New York! Happy, now? That's all I know."

They were silent. Cyborg and Beastboy were regarding him with measured looks, Raven just looked surprised, and Starfire worried.

"Her flute?" Raven asked. "I didn't see her with one."

"That just sounds crazy, dude." Beastboy finally said. "Even I couldn't have come up with a crazier theory."

"Are you sure Slade doesn't have you under some sort of control?" Cyborg asked.

"Yes! Look, I know that whole apprentice stage was my fault, but I learned my lesson from it, okay?"

"I don't know you've been acting out of sync for weeks now. It would explain a lot." Cyborg said.

"For weeks? What are you saying?"

"You're acting like you did when Slade first showed up! You're in your room constantly, you train alone, you don't focus on anything other than what you deem important-"

"Of course I'm doing all of those things! I can't stand listening to you and Beast Boy fight over stupid things, I've asked you guys if you want to train and you never do! I'm sorry I don't find Kettering interesting! It's been awhile since I've taken advice from a reporter on how to do my job!"

"You have an answer for everything, don't you, you-"

At this point they were shouting into each other's faces. Raven stepped between them, Beastboy restraining Cyborg and Starfire Robin. "Break it up, you two." Raven said calmly. "Yelling won't solve this. Robin, Cyborg is just concerned that Slade has gotten to you again."

"Like hell he is-"

Raven raised her voice over him. "And I have to say that I am as well."

"You don't honestly believe-"

"Robin, I've never seen you let him touch you outside of fight except when he was threatening to kill us." He froze. "So just let us test you to make sure that isn't the case, okay? Then we'll talk out the whole Mel thing after, won't we, Cyborg? Beastboy?"

The boys had calmed down considerably. Cyborg nodded. "As long as we add Kettering to the roster, I'm up for it."

They all looked at Robin. Under her logic, he managed to push down his anger. Barely. "I'll go along with it."

* * *

The machine beeped. Cyborg read the results, not quite able to mask his disappointment. "Well, that was the last test. It looks like we're all clear of any form of control."

Robin ripped off the tubes and sensor pads attached to his body. "Great, now that that's out of the way, we can discuss what really matters."

His team gathered around. "So what's Slade's Mel Theory?"

* * *

Mel stood on the roof where Slade left her, waiting for his return. The fog she had called up was dissipating, signaling that he should be here soon. Sure enough, she heard the soft thump he gave when landing.

"Did you deliver the message?" She asked.

"Of course. Exactly as you wanted me to."

"Good. You may go." Slade's eye narrowed at the order, but he didn't say anything. She had her flute in her right hand.

He was gone in a heartbeat. Jericho appeared as soon after. He looked troubled, but nodded for her to continue. She raised the flute to her lips.

This melody was one of aggression, of loud protest and righteous outrage. It quickly attached itself to the most prominent fear: the uncertainty of New York. It engulfed the world, driving action where diplomatic discussion had been.

Mel released the last note. The pressure was on, now. Jericho's hand was on her shoulder, his eyes asking very clearly, _Is this the right thing to do?_

"Someone needs to remind them that they're not invincible," she said, "especially from mind games. Besides, if they can't survive this, then they don't deserve to continue to exist."

He bit his lower lip, but a tremor of pain almost brought him to his knees. Mel caught him. "It's coming back faster." She swore under her breath, watching him with a mixture of worry and fear. But Jericho just smiled in spite of the pain. _Tonight?_

Pain, guilt. She shook her head. "No, not tonight. We still have work to do."

She raised her flute to her lips. Eventually she would play another lullaby for another city, but for now, all her music was for him.

* * *

**A/n: Now imagine Beastboy trying to restrain Cyborg...**


	7. Chapter 6: Blood Ties

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 5.**

_**"But hey, at least we'll have this strange story to tell, love and death and blood and daddy-issues. And holy crap, I'm a psychiatrist's wet dream."  
~Kendare Blake**_

**Chapter 6: Blood Ties**

"I don't know, Robin. It all sounds so bizarre." Raven said.

"Yeah, besides, we met her earlier for coffee. She's about as normal as anyone can be." Beast Boy said.

Robin rubbed his temple, tired. "Look, that's just why Slade came to talk to me. I'm not even sure if I believe it myself."

"He's playing with you, man." Cyborg said. "Slade has a way with messing with your head, and he knows it."

The others appeared to agree, or were at least too confused to answer. Robin wrestled down his anger. This was time to swallow his pride. "So, Cyborg, what about Chloe Kettering has you worried?"

"For starters, she's pushing for legislation banning heroes under the age of 21." Cyborg said.

"They're putting the drinking age as our limit?"

"But that's not all-" The tower alarm went off again. "Dammit, just as we were getting somewhere."

As if Robin's part of the discussion was a waste of time.

"Well, I guess we are back in business." Raven said.

* * *

The bank doors were blown clean off. A girl with white hair in a black and copper body suit leaned casually against the smoking plaster of her work. She wore a mask that covered the top half of her face, one with a solid black half covering her left eye and a copper half with an eyehole.

"It took you long enough. If I were serious about this, I would have been halfway to Gotham by now." She said.

"Who are you?" Robin asked.

"I'm called Ravager."

"What's your business, blowing off doors?" Beastboy said.

"Normally, I would be halfway to Gotham by now." Ravager said. She jumped down the stairs, landing nimbly in front of Robin. "But today I'm looking for Slade."

"So why blow off the bank doors?" Robin asked. Starfire was edging up in the corner of his eye, hands green with power. He gestured for her to wait, a little surprised when she backed off immediately.

"Oh, that?" Ravager waved dismissively. "I had to get your attention somehow. The grapevine has it that you're his new favorite."

"That's old news." Robin said. "He got over it."

She smirked. "He never gets over it. But looking at you, I can see why he would label you a lost cause."

"If you want a fight, just say so."

"You're on, Birdie Boy."

Something snapped. "Don't call me that!" He shouted, swinging first. She dodged, catching him in the side with a kick. In seconds, they were all out. At this point, the other four Titans had recovered from their initial shock.

"It's like they're siblings or something." Beastboy said to Star, only to realize that she was now enthusiastically cheering Robin on. "Okay."

"Hey, what's going on?" They turned to see Mel and Jericho heading to meet them. They appeared to have just come out of a performance at a coffee shop, they both had steaming cups and Jericho was carrying a guitar case.

"We got an alarm." Raven began.

"Turned out to be this crazy chick who just wanted to see Robin." Cyborg continued.

"So we figured we'd let them fight it out." Beastboy finished.

Jericho looked over. A smile broke out across his face. He took off towards the wild dust storm Robin and Ravager had kicked up, waving.

"I wouldn't do that." Beastboy called after him. "He does know that that's dangerous, right?" The others looked at Mel, who shrugged.

Robin and Ravager pause to look at him. She let's go of Robin and walks up to meet him, arms outstretched. They hug. "Joey! It's been forever!"

Raven stares. "What just happened?"

"Jericho, you know her?" Robin asked as Starfire helps him up.

Jericho nods happily.

Ravager looks around, suddenly aware that everyone expected her to answer for him. "Joey's my baby brother." She looks at Robin. "Sorry, but our match will have to wait. I can't possibly fight in front of my precious little Joey." She pinches his cheeks, causing him to laugh while he struggled to get free.

"Uh…"

"Here, we were on our way back to our place." Mel said. "Why don't you guys come along? We were thinking about inviting you over anyway."

Ravager starts stretching Jericho's cheeks causing him to flail. "_Our_ place? Joey, when did I give you permission to have a girlfriend?"

Jericho rubs his cheeks, which our now bright red. He sticks his tongue out at her, then dodged her subsequent punch. Grabbing Mel's hand, he sprints down the street, Ravager close behind. The Titans look at each other, shrug, and chase after.

* * *

"Whoa, you guys live here?" Beast Boy asked.

Jericho and Mel had led them to an abandoned concert hall they had converted into a sort of studio apartment. The rows of seats had been removed, leaving a long, sloping floor. A full kitchen followed one of the curving walls, its counters and stoves built like steps. A single row of mismatched couches faced the stage. In all, the room was shaped like a dome. Various instruments littered the floor, including a full pipe organ and a Japanese taiko drum.

"You're collection's grown, Joey." Ravager, who was Rose now that her mask was off, said appreciatively. "You can play them all, can't you?"

Jericho nodded.

"You always were mom's little show-off."

He punched her shoulder lightly, then gestured for the others to make themselves at home. Starfire and Beastboy instantly took off to try the various instruments. Robin took a seat on the couch with Cyborg and Rose.

"So why are you looking for Slade, Rose?"

She accepted the cup of coffee Mel offered her. "I'm worried. Well, I haven't stopped worrying since he dropped out of the mercenary business after Joey's incident. But lately I've had this bad feeling, like something truly terrible is going to happen."

"No offense," Cyborg said, "but why do you care?"

Rose looked surprised. "You haven't told them?"

Jericho shook his head.

"Can I?"

After a quick glance at Mel, he nodded.

Rose turned to the Titans. "Slade is our father."

Robin almost drops his coffee. The mood in the room moved quickly from shocked to disbelief.

"Say what?"

"Wait, let me get this straight," Beastboy said slowly, "one of the most badass villains we've ever fought is _his_," he points at Jericho, "father? How does that make sense?"

"Is this true?" Robin asks him.

Jericho looked uncomfortable. "Yeah."

Everyone froze again.

"Joey, you can speak again?" Rose asked gently.

Even Jericho looked surprised. He placed his hand against his throat, then looked at Mel.

"I thought you might want to talk to your sister." She said. For a moment, he just stares at her, then he snatches her, dragging her over the couch and into his lap with a deep kiss. Beastboy wolf whistled.

"Aw, come on, man. You have guests over." Cyborg teased.

Robin found himself imagining his kiss with Starfire. Sneaking a glance, he saw that she was blushing. Their eyes met, and heat crept up his neck to his face.

"I love you." Jericho said. Mel smiled, her eyes closing as she slumped in his arms. "Sorry about that, guys. The spell she uses to restore my voice requires her to be asleep." He explained, tucking Mel into the seat next to him with her head on his shoulder, a protective arm around her. His voice was smooth, the way you would imagine a singer's would be, but there was another element to it that made sound fragile, like it was a whisper from the past, a mere shadow of what it had been.

"You two are adorable." Rose said. "I might just let you keep her."

Jericho laughed. "I want to see you try to make her leave."

She returned his laugh. "You will, I'll make sure of that." Then in a more serious tone, "So she wants us to talk? What did you have in mind?"

"First things first, Rose." He looked like he was bracing himself. "If you're Ravager, then Grant…"

She looked away. "Grant's dead."

His shoulders fell. "Then Mom…"

"She can handle herself. She dealt with Dad's crazy for all those years."

"But we were the only thing keeping her sane."

"She accepted Grant and my choice a long time ago. You're the only one she ever worried about. The only one we've all worried about."

"Even though I'm the only meta in the family?"

"Especially because you're our only meta." She glanced over at Robin, who was staring off into space but clearly listening. "Is this a good time to talk?"

He laughed again, this time bitterly. "Rose, this is probably the only time I can talk. But yes, I trust them entirely."

"Oi, Spiky." Robin looked around, only to realize he was now _Spiky_. "Yeah, you. Stop pretending you don't want to interrogate us both about our father. This is a once in a lifetime chance."

"How is he, Robin?" Jericho asked quietly.

Robin looked around again. At some point Raven and Cyborg had slipped away to join Beast Boy and Starfire with the instruments, leaving the siblings alone with him. "I've only seen him once in the past year or so, and he seemed worried about what was happening in New York."

"That doesn't sound like him." Rose said.

Jericho kept a straight face. "Did he say why?"

Robin paused, his eyes falling on Mel. "Does he know you're together?"

"No. He doesn't know I'm here, or that I'm a Titan, or anything about me since I was twelve."

"Twelve?" Robin asked.

"That's when Joey lost his voice." Rose said.

"What happened?"

She hesitated, but Jericho nodded. "Back when Dad was a mercenary for hire, one of his targets hired some idiot-"

"The Jackal." Jericho interrupted darkly.

"-to find out who hired him."

"He went to one of my recitals for once, not knowing he was being followed. The Jackal got me on my way to choir practice the next day. Dad wouldn't tell them who hired him, and that bastard had a knife to my throat. When I woke up, my vocal chords had been slashed."

"What happened after?"

"Mom shot his eye out." Rose said proudly.

"He came to the hospital to apologize, then Mom shot his eye." Jericho said with a slight smile. "In all fairness, she was aiming for his head, but I guess a bullet to the brain isn't enough to kill the old man."

"I'll keep that in mind." Robin said. Rose raised an eyebrow.

"Dad used his tough love approach on you?"

"No, I know tough love." Robin said, remembering his six month training period with Bruce. "He used his utterly insane approach on me. He was going to kill my team because I wouldn't totally submit."

Jericho looked disturbed. Rose massaged her temple. "Shit. When was this?"

"Two years ago?"

"I thought so. That's around the time Grant died."

"Robin, I'm sorry." Jericho said suddenly. He had the look of someone being hit with a realization.

"What? Why?"

"I was supposed to take Grant's place."

Rose burst out laughing. Robin tried to imagine this wide-eyed boy in one of Slade's apprentice uniform, robbing technology firms and shooting down opposition. It was like trying to imagine Beastboy devouring an entire roasted pig.

"Joey, I would never have let you do what I do."

"How long did it take for Dad to train you?" Jericho asked.

That shut her up. "He didn't."

"I thought so."

"Yes, but-"

"Rose, you know Dad was set on a male apprentice."

Rose broke eye contact. "I know."

Jericho sighed. "I'm really sorry, Robin. I ran away, got as far away from everyone as possible before Dad could find me again. I had to sort things out."

Robin was about to say something when Mel stirred. "Sorry, Jericho. I couldn't hold it for any longer."

He smiled at her, kissing her forehead.

Rose shook the dark shadow off. "Hey now, I still haven't approved of you."

Mel smiled with a dark confidence that hadn't been there before. "And what's the test, sis?"

"Sis?"

Jericho attempted to pull Mel closer, still glaring down his sister, but she slid out of his grasp. "Yeah, _sis_, what did you have in mind?"

"Spar with me?"

"I thought as much. Not here, okay? We just finished fixing it up." Grabbing her hand, Jericho shook his head.

"Maybe you should listen to him, sweetheart." Rose said. "He's trying to save your life."

"I'm not the one he's trying to save." Mel replied. To Jericho, "It's okay. I'll set up the barrier so we don't destroy half of Jump."

He looked between the two desperately, before giving up and nodding. Cyborg put a hand on his shoulder. "It's okay, man. You're never going to win that fight."

"Cat fight! Woo Hoo!" Beastboy shouted, instantly earning him several slaps that left him unconscious.

"What do you say, sister?" Mel said. "To the roof?"

"After you."

* * *

**Author's Note: In the DCverse, Jericho, Grant (Ravager I), and Rose (Ravager II) are all Slade's children, though Rose is actually his youngest child (he has her with another woman after Adeline ****shoots**** divorces him). In my version, I've made them all Adeline and Slade's and Rose the middle child. Interesting fact: in the original Slade hires Nightwing (Robin's future alias) to train Rose. In one of the twists, it's revealed that Nightwing also teaches Rose justice and morality, and she eventually loses faith in her father and joins the Titans.**

**Edit: Thank you, anonymous, for correcting me. Slade's first son's name is Grant Wilson, not Garth. I'm not sure how I mixed that one up. Also, on the continuity of my story I've had to alter chunks in order to create this one. I don't feel bad because DC does this on a regular basis. And for the record, I'll be the first to admit that I'm not up to date on the comics, so if I miss some specifics, I apologize. The information on Joseph's history was gold. Joey? A player? Damn those deceptively innocent green eyes! (I have not heard of The Boys). Also, Holy Review, Batman! Were you writing me an essay?  
**

**It also wouldn't be right for me to thank one reviewer and not another, so I would like to also thank feathered moon wings on her much appreciated reviews. As for your question on this chapter, I have to imagine that being raised in the Wilson Family leaves you with a low expected survival rate. So while Grant's death may have been sad, it wasn't entirely unexpected. Yeah, I guess it is a lot of information to handle for one ~2000 word update, huh? I'm not very good at taking it slow.  
**


	8. Chapter 7: Wilson Family Reunion

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 6.**

"_**The capacity for friendship is God's way of apologizing for our families."**_

_**~Jay McInerny**_

**Chapter 7: Wilson Family Reunion**

The roof, however, was occupied. Slade stood at the edge of the roof, arms crossed, waiting. "I heard I was being sought out."

"I was just making sure you were still alive." Rose said coolly.

"I can take care of myself. I don't need to be checked up on." He eyed her suit. "Wearing your brother's suit? Rose, I thought I told you to stay out of this business."

"I inherited too much of my father."

"And just enough of your mother to not listen to me." Slade said, not entirely displeased. "Well, I'm here-" His visible eye widened. "Joseph?"

Jericho's expression hardened. Mel swayed, and he caught her just before she fell. He picked her up and handed her to Cyborg. "Can you watch her for me? Don't let him go near her."

"You can speak again?"

Jericho sighed. "I'm sorry, guys, but can you give us some time? I think I need to straighten out some family issues."

"You sure?" Cyborg asked.

Jericho nodded. The Titans turned to leave, but he reached out and grabbed Robin's shoulder. "As far as I'm concerned, you've been adopted into our family."

Well aware that everyone was now staring at him, he was at a loss. Too late, he realized his moment to deny this passed, and his team accepted it as truth. All he could do was send a glare to Slade, one he could only hope said _don't think I accept this, you haven't won the title of my father_. But it was wasted, because Slade was still fixated on Jericho with the same disbelieving stare.

"Joseph."

"It's not permanent," he snapped, "she can give me back my voice for short bits of time, and apparently she thinks you're worth one of them."

"I deserved that."

This seemed to break Jericho's resolve to be angry. "Yes, you do."

"Joseph." But he couldn't get past his son's name. His eyes flashed around desperately, finally settling on Robin. "Why did you keep him here?"

"He's your second Ravager, isn't he?" Jericho said, the bitter returning to his voice.

"I never thought Grant would die." But he didn't deny it.

"How did Grant die, Dad? Or were you not there for that?"

"I was." His voice was straining to maintain calm. "He burnt out."

Rose spoke up this time, making it clear that even she didn't know this. "Burnt out?"

"He choose to boost his physical abilities with a risky treatment that sapped his life the more he used it." Slade said in a detached voice, as if he were the doctor giving bad news rather than father of the victim. "He burnt out quickly, much more quickly than anyone thought he could."

They were silent. No one seemed to know what to say, until Slade finally spoke up again. He almost sounded like he was pleading. "Joseph, you have to know that all I wanted to do was apologize. I'm sorry for what you lost. Of you three, I never wanted you to be affected by my choices, yet here you are, perhaps affected the most."

"I wouldn't say that." Jericho said shortly. "Grant's dead. I'm pretty sure that a big effect."

"That's true, but I can't do anything to fix it, or harm him any further than I already have. But you lost your dream, and I can't do anything to bring it back."

Jericho was fighting in himself, apparently suppressing some retort. Slade looked away, his stiff movements suggesting emotional turmoil.

"Do you hate me for it? For holding on to my honor and skill by directly risking your life?"

"No." Slade's attention snapped back to his son. Jericho's eyes had a determined look in them. "I don't hate you for it. I got over it years ago." _But I haven't forgiven you._ He couldn't say them, but they hung on to his tone and his body language.

Something in Slade deflated. "I see. I've said what I needed to."

Rose shrugged. "So have I."

Robin merely looked at Jericho, who appeared to be in the middle of an internal struggle. Finally he emerged. "I want to know what you're going to do now."

"What?"

"You gave up being a mercenary, you've already attempted to train an apprentice and failed several times, and you've finally found me. What now, Dad? How many more lives can you tear apart?"

"I think I'll watch over you and you're pretty new girlfriend." Slade said evenly. Jericho stiffened. "I almost didn't notice her. Tell me, how much do you know about her?"

"Back off."

"You haven't answered my question."

"Leave her alone, understand?"

"I will if she poses no threat to you."

Jericho started to laugh. "Of everyone I've ever met, she poses the least amount of threat to me."

But somewhere in his laugh, he stopped making noise. Robin picked up his communicator. "Cyborg?"

"Yeah, Mel wanted me to tell you she's out of time for now."

"We understand."

"Joey?" Rose said, shocked. Robin looked up to see Jericho grabbing his father by the shoulders, his eyes already green and black. Slade didn't fight as his son faded into him. But Jericho was standing outside of his father almost as soon as he had completely faded.

"Dad?"

"It's okay, Rose," Slade said, suddenly tired. He held his hand to his head. "He just wanted to warn me away from his girlfriend again."

Rose sighed. "Well, it looks as if my trip here was unnecessary. Joey, I still haven't given my blessing to this girl yet. Dad, take care, okay?" Slade snorted. Rose disappeared into the night.

"Robin, I'm going to count on you to keep an eye on him for now." Slade said as he watched his daughter jump across the skyline. "I have to go talk some sense in my daughter."

And he, too, disappeared.

* * *

They found the team at the all-night diner a block away. Mel was currently devouring a huge stack of waffles. She stopped when she saw them enter. "Sorry, babe, I was dipping into my emergency reserves for those last few minutes." Jericho sat down and stared at her intently. "Well I thought you two would need a moment. Come on, Jer, it was your first chance to talk to him in four and a half years. Don't give me that, I know you've been dying for some sort of reconciliation."

"Uh, can you guys talk?" Beastboy asked after a few minutes of following the "conversation."

"Sort of." Mel said. "I can read what he's saying pretty easily when he reaches out with his power. It's sort of like a one-way possession, but not quite. So far it's only worked on me, though." Jericho looked around, as if surprised to find himself surrounded. "He says that he's sorry our night turned into a family night, and that he didn't mean to get Robin involved that deeply."

"It's okay." Robin said quietly. His head was spinning with the new information. He didn't like how much of it had to do with Slade. "We should get back to the tower, actually."

"You guys are the Teen Titans, right?" They looked up to find an ordinary man staring at them, unknown emotions running behind his intent gaze.

"That'd be us." Cyborg said. Something flickered in the man's eyes, and they realized that it wasn't awe he held them in, it was anger.

"Taking a break?" He said, bitterly. "How's New York coming along? Or are you too busy eating?"

They were shocked. No one knew what to say.

"I thought so. I suppose St. Petersburg slipped past you, too?"

"The League doesn't want us to interfere." Robin interrupted.

"What?"

He looked him straight in the eye, remembering one of Bruce's lessons. _Your mask can serve more than one purpose._ Bruce had said as he fit the mask over Dick's blue eyes._ Of course, I don't want them finding out who you are, but you see these white covers? They're like sunglasses. You can be looking at anything, or glaring, and no one can tell. That alone can be enough to completely disarm a mugger long enough for you to take him down._

And it was true, he could see it in this man's face.

"They don't want us to get involved," he repeated in his version of Bruce's dead-serious voice, "but that isn't going to stop us from doing everything to protect Jump."

"Even if it means interfering." Cyborg added.

The man looked torn between anger and trepidation. "I hope so."

The team stared after him, only to realize the diner was buzzing with unhappy whispers.

There was a clink of metal on porcelain as Mel put her fork down. "Let's go, guys. I've had enough here."

She paid and they left, angry gazes and harsh whispers following them out the door. Deep within him, the strength he had felt was wavering. A new doubt blossomed. St. Petersburg was gone? He hadn't known that. He watched her black hair catch the wind. It made even less sense when he tried to factor in Mel. How could she completely cut off a city? What would cause her to do it? Jericho turned to her and smiled, apparently telling her something. Why would Jericho, the most innocent person Robin had ever met, trust her?

He had spent hours dissecting every piece of data Bruce had wired him, but the League had no idea what was going on. Most of their reports consisted of how their data collection techniques failed. He had gotten nowhere with this case, and here his team was promising his city that they would do what they could with it.

_Can I really lead them this time?_

* * *

Back at the Tower they split, silently, to continue research, but the resolve they had shared at the diner had dissipated. How could they research something that they had no control over?

"I'm heading to bed." Raven announced after it became clear that tonight was most likely not going to be productive. "Try to not shout at each other for a few hours, okay?"

"I'll join you." Beastboy said, then blushed when Raven gave him a shocked look. "I mean in going to bed in your- I mean my room. Not that I was going to, you know-"

To everyone's surprise, Raven just laughed. She left the room without replying. Beastboy wandered toward his room. "I'll just go to my bed now."

Cyborg watched after them. "I didn't see _that_ coming."

"Me neither." Robin said. "But back to our case. Want to do a little interfering?"

A grin broke across Cyborg's face. "I thought you would never ask."

"I think we can send a drone in with a recorder. It doesn't seem like the League has tried that yet, and all other attempts have failed."

"So we can get our own look at the situation. I like it."

* * *

Mel stood alone on an impossibly tall skyscraper, staring down at this glittering world she was in now. She glanced up to the sky, which opened for her into the bright glittering expanse of this world's dream. Beyond it, she knew she could find her escape, the edge of this world where she could cross over and be on her way to the next world. The next adventure. But just as she stepped into the dream realm, a memory brushed over her. Jericho's hand, calloused from years of fighting and guitar playing, sliding into hers, his arm pulling her closer, silently calling her back.

"So you do love him." Her voice, but warmer, stronger. She opened her eyes to find her reflection staring back at her. Same face, but the reflection's eyes held green flecks, her hair in warm auburn spikes to Mel's straight, cool black. Harmony. Wearing her usual flame-painted tee and jean capris, she stood there, cool air blowing over her exposed arms, staring at her younger sister.

"Harmony. What are you doing here? Won't your customers miss you?"

"They can handle themselves for a night while I see what's keeping my usually flighty little sister grounded."

Mel sighed, allowing her dream to melt away, leaving them in a darkened studio. Jericho lie sleeping on the couch behind her, his hand entwined with hers. She could feel Harmony's gaze on her.

"Yes, I do."

Harmony sighed, "I knew this would happen eventually. Just tell me that you aren't letting him get you involved in this world's fate."

Mel was silent.

"Melody," her voice contained a warning, "You know better. You know Dad's rules-"

"Dad," Mel said slowly, vehemently, "made those rules in retrospect. If anyone, he should know about emotional involvement. He set us out on our own a long time ago to find our own path. I don't know how much of a say he has anymore."

She caught a glance of her sister's face. The pity was too much. She turned back to Jericho, to watch him sleep in peace. To remind herself why she was determined to stick this mess out. Neither sister said anything for a long moment.

Finally, as dawn broke through the few windows in their studio, Harmony sighed again. "Okay. Do what you will. I just hope this kid is worth it."

Mel didn't take her eyes off of Jericho. "Someone has to be on his side."

* * *

It had taken them three hours to set up, then another five for their drone to get to New York. But they had done it, and by the time they reached the city, the sun was peaking over the New York City skyline.

"That doesn't look right." Cyborg remarked.

Robin agreed. Something about the city was definitely off. It was like New York had lost its color... Then it hit him, New York wasn't reflecting any color, despite the soft pink haze in the background.

"Cyborg-"

Raven screamed. Instinct kicked in. He raced through the Tower, followed closely behind by Cyborg. They were at Raven's door in seconds, only to find that they had been beaten there by Beastboy and a sleepy Starfire. Raven was still in bed, bursts of black energy snapping out from her. Beastboy was holding her in an attempt to sooth her back to her senses. From what Robin could make out over Beastboy's shoulder, her eyes were wide and fearful.

"He was there… I felt him again! In the coffee shop, at the diner…" She said in short bursts.

"Shhhh, Rave, shh. It was all just a nightmare." Beastboy said, stroking her hair.

"He's back in our city." Her eyes found Robin's.

"Who?' He asked reflexively.

"Trigon. He's back."

* * *

**Author's note: Well, that took longer than I thought it would. Sorry about the wait. Things will heat up in the next few chapters, but I'm probably going to delay releasing them so I can slow down the pace a bit. Yay for editing!**

**Also, I was reading through the last chapter and I couldn't help but think, "What about Terra? She wasn't a male apprentice." I have to imagine Terra is awkward subject in Slade's life (especially in the comics), but here I'll just have to say that she was a mind game for Slade, a form of revenge on the Titans.**


	9. Chapter 8: The Second Dream

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 7.**

_**"Childhood should be carefree, playing in the sun; not living a nightmare in the darkness of the soul."**_

_**~David Pelzer**_

**Chapter 8: The Second Dream**

"It was just a nightmare, Rave." Beastboy said. She was still shaking, but now that she had warned her friends she seemed to have calmed down.

"Just a nightmare." Raven repeated. Robin wasn't so sure, but he had no evidence to back his suspicions. That much had been made clear to him yesterday.

"Why don't I go start breakfast," Cyborg said, visibly relieved that it was nothing more than dream. "We made progress last night."

"Progress?" Starfire asked. The word definitely inspired hope.

"Yeah," He said. "We managed to send a drone to New York to get a visual of what's going on. It should have entered the city by now. Are you going to be okay?"

Raven nodded. Beastboy let go, but took her hand. "Come on, Raven. Some food should help put this behind you."

"Typical boy." She muttered, but it was more or less her normal self.

Robin took Starfire's hand as well. "We should go too."

The smell of burning waffle greeted them as they entered the kitchen. Cyborg was staring at the screen across the room, apparently trying to refrain from shooting something. Robin could see why. The screen was black with white letters centered in the middle:

SIGNAL LOST

The fire alarm goes off, the tower's automatic system soaking the smoking waffle iron and Cyborg.

After drying off, Cyborg rejoins them in the kitchen, where the emergency frozen waffles had been broken out. Robin, half-toasted waffle in mouth, typed away furiously at his station. "Good news, Cy," he managed to say through the waffle, "The drone was recording up until it went offline. We still have that."

"What are you waiting for? Play it!"

He brought the recorded video up, tapping the few commands that would bring it to full screen at the moment New York City finally came into view.

"Why does it look like a post card?" Beastboy asked. "You know, those dramatic black and white post cards?"

"It looks like something drained the color out of the place…" Raven said. She was back to normal now, they all were now that the sun was up.

They watched as the drone approached the city, the color receding to the edges of the frame as it flew closer and closer until finally the entire screen was a black and white photo of New York. About ten minutes in, they lost signal, as if they had gotten too close.

"Well, that was a bust." Beastboy said. The rest of the team seemed to agree.

"Come on, Rob, we should get some sleep." Cyborg said, defeated. "We'll try again when we wake up."

Robin realized how tired he was. He kissed Star before heading to his room. "Watch the Tower for me, okay?"

"Have a good rest."

He fell asleep smiling.

* * *

_The Batcave was dark, unlit for now. He was training with Bruce, who was ducking in and out of the shadows._

"_You call yourself my sidekick?" Bruce asked. "You can't even win against Two-Face!"_

"_Bruce, please, I-"_

"_Block this!"_

_A hand shot out, catching his arm. Realizing it was a decoy, Robin's commanded his other arm to block, but it was too heavy to move. The punch landed on his jaw, sending him flying. Robin's body seized. He lie, paralyzed, as Two-Face walked towards him, his figure flashing into Slade's every few steps, all the while talking to him in Bruce's voice._

"_Give up. It'll be over quicker that way-"_

"Not to interrupt your nightmare, Boy Wonder," Melody said, and, as if she had hit a pause button, his dream froze. She walked up to him to offer an arm up, something he promptly ignored after realizing he could move unrestrained, "but I think that you've had enough."

The image of Slade in the Batcave melted, until Robin was only staring at darkness. "Where are we?"

She glanced around, her glowing blue eyes eventually returning to his. "I'm not sure. Nowhere in particular. You're the dreamer, here."

"So these are real. You really do this." He sat back, relieved.

Smiling wryly, she asked, "Did you think you were going crazy? Robin? Were you doubting your sanity? I suppose Slade does that to you."

"Why are you doing this?"

"This?" Slade's image flashed in and out of existence again, making Robin cringe. "I'm not. That was your nightmare. I just interrupted it to talk with you."

"Why?"

She sat next to him. "Mostly to assure you that I am real, even if you're team doesn't believe you. I can't have you thinking otherwise."

"Why?"

"You sound like you're two and just discovered how to ask questions." She said. He couldn't help it, he smiled. She returned the smile half-heartedly, but she looked distant, worried. "It's almost time."

"Time?"

"Yeah. We're out of time." Mel said. "I'm on my last hope. But that's not the real reason I'm here." She stood, offering her hand again. He took it.

"Then why are you here?"

She didn't answer, just walked off into the darkness. He followed. Gradually, the darkness broke like a morning fog, and through the trailing fingers he caught glimpses of black and white textures that suggested walls, concrete. It looked vaguely familiar. Slowly it dawned on him.

New York City.

"You're bringing me here?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"Again with the why questions?"

He waited for her answer.

"So you know where the blame lies. So you can see what I'm really doing to these people."

The darkness was gone. Robin looked around. The city was still, frozen in place, night walkers paused mid step, eyes closed as if blinking.

"What did you do to them? Are they-?"

"No. They're suspended in a dreamless sleep." She was standing in the middle of a road, in front of a motionless, grayscale taxi, surveying the scene around her dispassionately. "It's actually a complicated spell. It took me a month to get it right."

He stopped. A few feet away, with a look of total shock plastered on her face, was Diana. Wonder Woman.

"Your father's a smart man, Robin." Her voice was still emotionless, detached. "He told her to come in wearing ear protection. He already suspected that my spell is auditory. It almost worked, too. But he misjudged one thing."

He suddenly felt as if he was sinking. His vision blurred, the clear lines defining everything lost in the murky depths of lost consciousness. She was cutting the connection, he managed to think. He could barely make out her form in the inky darkness. Her voice had adopted an echo-y quality.

"The human skeletal system acts as a support to our auditory system. Vibrations can be picked up as far away as your feet and still be heard. You simply have to touch the ground, and it's over. I have you under my spell."

Darkness.

* * *

Robin sat up. His scar (well, the scar he was most aware of, anyway) throbbed, bringing back memories of his final days as a sidekick. He wouldn't think of that now. Instead, he tried to re-orient himself. He was in his room. Good. He heard Cyborg tossing and turning next door, meaning this wasn't a dream. Also good.

New York City was still gone. Not good.

Sighing, he pulled the covers off and jumped out of bed. Time to get back to work.

* * *

"Where's Joseph?" Slade asked.

Mel brushed some hair out of her eyes. "What, I'm not good enough?" She grinned at his annoyed look. "I'm teasing, old man. He doesn't want to speak with you right now. I tried to convince him…" She shrugged.

"Fine. Why did you call me here?" He already had his exit planned. This meeting wasn't going to last long.

"We're working together, are we not?"

"On uncertain terms. You withheld the fact that my son was with you."

"On his terms. This was all for Joey." She said. The humor in her voice was gone, she was completely serious now.

"Go on."

"I called you here to tell you that he's banned you from our studio. He'll contact you when he wants to."

"It doesn't work that way."

"That's what I told him, but good luck with that."

"Is that all you have to say to me?"

"Pretty much."

The roof was empty in seconds.

* * *

Three more break-ins. Robin was still sore from fighting X's droids, but even so he preferred the loud, banter-filled battles in the city streets to the frustrating silence that hung over the tower when they returned. How do you handle a situation where you can't identify the source of the problem? Or even figure out what the problem is? The TV was off, no one wanted to watch the growing news on how these cities disappearing were effecting the world. Financial crisis, trade disruptions triggering food shortages, political instability, not to mention the sheer psychological terror that not knowing why or how it disappeared caused. It seemed so very far away, but yet the fact that every day another city disappeared left the distinct feeling of waiting for that moment an invisible hand draws your number. Then poof, like that, you're gone into oblivion, unable to be reached by even the superheroes.

"Any ideas?" Raven asked after the fourth long silence lapsed into being unbearable.

"Nope." Beastboy answered from his position reclining on the couch, throwing a ball at the ceiling.

"Not any that hasn't already been tried." Robin said, tapping at his computer. Silence again. Then his communicator rang.

"Hey." Mel's face appeared on his screen. His team crowded around, eager for the distraction. "I hope you don't mind, Jericho gave this to me. He wanted me to ask if you guys would be interested in-"

"Whatever it is, yes." Cyborg said.

"-coming over to hang out." She finished, smiling. "We didn't really get a chance to yesterday, and we're performing today."

His team was gone, already preparing to head out. "We'll be over soon, I guess."

_What are you planning?_

Cyborg appeared, human once again. "Cy, we should go in full uniform."

"Easy for you to say. You can take yours off. Mine keeps me alive. All I can do is hide it."

"Cyborg, I didn't mean-"

"Save it, Boy Wonder. I know what you meant." Cyborg left to start the T Car, rings still activated. Robin watched his friend leave, feeling like it had been a long time since he had seen more than Cyborg's back.

* * *

The Bayview was packed. They edged their way into the crowd, listening to the sweet, mournful sound Jericho had coaxed out of his guitar. No one seemed to notice that they were joined by the young heroes, despite everyone wearing their usual costumes. There was no room for anything but the escape found in the duo's music.

Melody's eyes opened, her lips forming the next words the song. Her voice was high, clear, hypnotic, almost, as she sang.

_As the rain falls, cool and clear_

_Driving away last night's dream_

_Awakening to the sound of the world breathing_

_Only to realize, in their eyes, we don't fit their scheme_

_Making it seem like we're lost in a dream_

He slipped his arm around Starfire, who placed her head against his chest. It was that type of song. Cyborg nudged him, all prior anger between them forgotten for the moment. He pointed at Beastboy and Raven, both of whom were acting like a magnet had been grafted on them. First a hand, then an arm. Robin smiled, glad they had discovered each other.

_I'll hold you tight, my dear_

_And maybe tonight, my dear_

_We can keep dreaming_

The song ended, the crowd shook itself awake to applaud. The sense of reality was flooding back now that there was nothing to stave it off with. Jericho accepted some water from a stage hand, but caught sight of Robin. He waved, happy to see him, only to realize that this may not have been the right thing to do. An angry hush fell across their crowd, with the Titans at the center of it.

"You aren't welcome here." A man said, cold glare fixed on Robin.

"Go back hiding in your tower!" Someone called out.

He barely had time to form a reply before the control on the crowd broke, and a mob of angry hands were reaching for them.

"Robin!" Mel's voice carried over the crowd, momentarily distracting them. In that moment, Jericho appeared at Robin's side, tugging his arm. He led them out the back and down the street to a relatively empty lot.

"That was not what I expected." Cyborg said. No else could speak.

Mel appeared. "Sorry, we didn't think-"

"Neither did we." Robin said.

Jericho and Mel shared a look. "Why don't you guys stay at our place tonight?"

"We couldn't-"

"Don't worry about it, if there's an emergency you can head out." Mel said. "We just don't want you exiled to your island just yet. Besides, it's our fault you had to go through with that."

"It's not your fault." Starfire said, surprising everyone. She hadn't been very talkative lately. "If anything, we are at fault for ruining your lovely music."

"Yeah, sorry about that," Raven said. "Well, Robin, what do you say? Do you think Jump should cool itself down tonight?"

His team looked at him, begging. "Fine, fine. We'll go."

"YES!" Beastboy said. "I wanted to try out that huge drum last time! Jericho, I'll race you!"

He took off as a cheetah, leaving Jericho with a horrified look on his face.

"You better go catch him, babe," Mel said, "I think he's serious about touching your musical instruments. Again."

Jericho raced after him. Robin watched after them, unable to shake this uneasy feeling that what happened in the coffee shop wasn't entirely unplanned. Star had his hand again.

"Are you coming, boyfriend Robin?"

"What? Oh, yeah." He joined his team in following Mel into the night, hoping that this wasn't another mistake. He didn't know if they could survive another one.

* * *

**A/n: Excuse my attempt at writing lyrics. I really don't know how songwriter's do it. So I really wish I could have actual dialogue with my reviewers (I can't really operate this site as well I used to), in that light I've turned on my PM, so feel free to shoot me a message.**


	10. Chapter 9: Demon in the Walled City

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 8.**

"_**To hear the phrase "our only hope" always makes one anxious, because it means that if the only hope doesn't work, there is nothing left."  
~ **__**Lemony Snicket**_

**Chapter 9: Demon in the Walled City**

The studio's atmosphere was entirely chilled, perfect, Robin felt, for his team. It released them from the tension they'd felt for the past few days, and helped eased their latest memory. Jericho sat cross-legged on stage, strumming disjointed chords on his guitar that fit together in strange, beautiful patterns. Mel was working the commercial-size espresso machine for Raven, they appeared to be chatting about magical weapons.

Someone sat next to him, someone warm and gentle. "Robin, we must talk."

"Sure, Star, what is it?" He pulled his gaze away from Mel.

"Are you feeling well?"

"Yeah, I guess. No worse than I have been."

"Something is getting the bug in you, yes?"

"Bugging me?" He corrected lightly. After a moment, "You don't see me as Slade's son, do you?"

She looked startled, like she hadn't thought that this of all the other problems they've had lately would be the one most prominent on his mind. "No."

"You told me once we were similar."

"You had hurt me." She reminded him. She sounded too much like one of his reoccurring nightmares. "But yes, you are similar in fighting and sometimes in thinking. But your intentions are opposite."

"So you don't think-"

"No," and this time he could see the worry, "but I think that he does."

Robin had nothing to say to that. Instead, he turned the conversation away. "What about you, Star? You've been quiet lately. Is there anything on your mind?"

Her eyes flicked to the kitchen and back. "No, there is nothing on the mind."

"Star, you can tell me."

She hesitated. "Do you like her?"

Jericho's delicately laid chords scrambled, loudly. Robin glanced over to see the boy clenching his eyes closed in deep concentration. After a few false starts, he managed to get back in rhythm, though his new song had a darker element to it.

"Mel? No, Star. She's just-" he hesitated. A friend? Can you call someone you barely trust that? "I don't trust her." He finished.

Star looked confused, but Raven and Mel were just about to join them. Mel caught them both looking at her. "Oh? Would you like some of my amazing espresso as well?"

"She's a coffee genius." Raven said, oddly giddy. Maybe she was happy that she could finally talk ancient lore with someone.

"It's nothing, really. Just a skill you pick up when you're a chronic insomniac." Mel said. "Here, I'll bring you guys back a cup."

"What were you talking of?" Star asks.

"She wanted to know more about demon-slaying weapons." Raven said. "We ended up talking about old inter-dimensional stories of weapons. She knows a lot more than anyone else I've ever met."

Mel returned with a tray of giant tea cups filled with coffee. She was just handing one to Jericho when a loud, disastrous noise nearly blasts the tray away. Jericho covers his ears, crouching over in pain. Robin looks over, Cyborg and Beast Boy were holding a music war with several instruments, arguing largely through noise.

Two bolts of blue lightening freezes them. "Maybe we should put the instruments down and drink some coffee." Mel says through clenched teeth. Cowed, both boys take their cups.

They congregate silently at the couches, sipping from their cups. Raven was right, the coffee was excellent, yet it didn't encourage conversation. The atmosphere mellowed out, the coffee flooding their veins, soothing and filled with warm summer breezes.

"What did you put in this?" Robin asks, sinking deep into the couch. But the room was fading fast, and, seconds later, he was asleep.

* * *

_Robin found himself in a closed stone room, a blacksmith's hovel with a large fire against the wall and a table and hammer in the center of the room. It was dark, the only light coming from the fireplace._

_Raven stood at the center, dressed entirely in white, looking everything like a priestess. They gathered around the glowing fire. Starfire, her eyes glowing green with power, shot a bolt into it, causing the flame to roar into a bright white blaze. Cyborg stepped forward, presenting Raven with the lump of black metal he was holding._

_Raising the metal over her head, she muttered an unintelligible incantation. White marks glowed over the metal, binding it. She placed it into the fire and Robin stepped up. The searing heat of the fire lit something within him. He found a hammer in his hand, and, without knowing where the knowledge came from, he began to shape the glowing metal. As he worked, a gentle melody rolled over him, working its way into the metal, pure and innocent, like a child's voice. It grew older and older, until it reached a man's voice. Jericho. When his song finished, the white fire died to embers._

_Robin drew out a glowing blade, shaped and ready. Raven poured cool water into a trench, muttering more incantations as he sank it in. The blade cooled, revealing a knife as black as night with white letters etched deep into its blade. Beastboy transformed into a huge black dragon and offered his back. Raven closed her eyes, as if praying, then used the tip of the knife to up a long strip of skin from his back. The skin dried rapidly into scaled black leather, which she wrapped around the hilt._

_Melody stepped forward from the darkness, leading Jericho, dressed in white, to them. She took the blade that Raven offered and kissed it. When she drew her lips away, the place where she had kissed, where the blade transformed into hilt, glowed deep blue, transformed into a dark blue gem._

_She turned to Jericho, eyes misted over with tears. He nodded solemnly. With a lunge, she buried the blade into his chest, where his heart was._

* * *

"NO!"

Robin wasn't the only one screaming that as he sat up. His entire team, gasping from the places on the couch they had fallen asleep at, sat staring, wild-eyed ahead of them.

An actual cry of pain cut through their receding fear. Robin looked over to see Jericho thrashing on the stage. Every tense muscle suggested agony, his eyes squeezed shut. Melody was on her knees, holding his head in her lap, stroking his hair.

"Shh," she whispered, "It'll be over soon."

This seemed to calm him a bit. She produced her flute and pressed it to her lips.

No sound came out, but a blue-white mist surrounded her flute. After a few minutes, the mist sank into Jericho and Mel dropped her flute and hugged him. He was breathing heavily, a sheen of sweat coating his forehead. He hugged her back, the fading pain glazing his wide green eyes.

"What just happened?" Beastboy asked.

Raven was on her feet and at his side instantly. She brushed Mel aside and yanked Jericho towards her. "How long?" She snarled, her eyes glowing white.

Mel pushed her away, getting into the empath's face. Her own eyes were glowing blue. "Back off. You haven't even given us time to explain."

"This better be good, Piper." Raven growled. "If not, you're dead."

She backed down. Mel's eyes returned to normal, and she immediately went to Jericho's side.

"Seriously, what just happened?" Beastboy asked Raven as she sat next to him in a huff.

"Before she performed her spell, I sensed my father in Jericho." Raven said. "But that's only part of it. That blue-white mist? It contained to souls of another city."

"So Slade and Robin were right?" Starfire asks, her voice trembling.

"Yes." This came from Mel, who had positioned herself in a way that both faced them and supported Jericho. "But please, hear me out."

"Then come out with it." Robin said.

She took a deep breath. "Back when Trigon had the world, he took interest in Jericho's soul. At first it was a way to control Slade, but after a while, it was because he realized that Jericho served as the perfect back up plan, and after Slade betrayed him, the perfect revenge."

The hostility had died. Her voice wove too fascinating a tale.

"So before you banished him, Raven, your father implanted a seed on Joseph Wilson's soul. One that would grow into a parasite, shredding the host and taking over his body to create another door for your father."

Raven looked unsure. "How do you come into the picture?"

"I've known Jericho for a long time, since after he ran away from his mother and father. We met at my sister's bar. He was a regular feature." She was smiling. "But he disappeared one day, and, when we met again, the seed had been planted." She stroked his hair. "Of course we didn't know that until after we started dating."

She painted a tragic picture, but Robin knew better. At least, he thought he did. "What do the cities have to do with it?" He asked rather harshly. The sympathy his team was showing broke a little.

She looked pained. "He wanted me to kill him. He said it was the only way to stop Trigon's return."

_Kill him._ Those words hung around them, weighing down the room with their implications.

"But I couldn't. I've been trying to find a way to get rid of the seed, but I'm running out of time." She sounded desperate now. "No, I'm out of time. I've been out of time since New York. I've been using the dreams of these people to stop the seed from growing, but it's only temporary."

"You've been using the souls of people to protect him?" Raven was livid again. "Don't you know that only makes Trigon stronger?"

Jericho released a sigh, breaking the tense atmosphere. His entire body relaxed, the faint rise and fall of his chest the only indication that he hadn't already died on his own.

"Not their souls, something more powerful. Their dreams." Mel explained tiredly. "Souls would work, too, but they would become food. Dreams, on the other hand, are entirely made of hope. I've been using people's hope to keep Trigon at bay."

"What give you the right to use millions of lives-" Cyborg began.

She quieted him before he could rampage. "I'm not. It's reversible. The dreams will be restored and the cities brought out of the suspended animation I put them in as soon as Jericho dies."

_Jericho dies._ It echoed around the room, in their minds. _Jericho must die for the cities to go back to normal._

"There's no other way?" Robin asked.

"Nope." He had fallen into a fitful asleep. She started stroking his hair again, as if to ease him. "Either Jericho dies with the seed or the seed is removed from his soul. Those are the only ways I'll be able to release the dreams."

"So the dream we all just had…" Raven began.

"I thought that if I drove the sword into his dream-self, it would kill the demon in his soul. Instead it let Trigon's seed grow more. I had to use two cities' worth this time to stop it."

"_Two _cities?"

Raven kept her cool. "Does that mean the sword won't work at all?"

"No, it will." She drew it out. Black leather on black metal with white etchings. A blue gem. That was the sword they had forged. "But I have to actually kill him."

Beastboy stared at the blade, rubbing the back of his neck. "Dude, that came out of my _skin_."

"The success is in the sacrifice." Raven muttered. She noticed her team staring at her. "It's part of the spell."

"Yes." Mel said. "I thought that if we used the sacrifice of his voice, it would be enough. But it must be his life."

"His voice?" Raven asked incredulously. Robin agreed, it seemed hardly comparable to a life.

"His dream, though he won't admit it." Mel replied. She looked broken, sad and tired. "He sang when he was young. Could have been great, maybe even the greatest of this time. But that was crushed. And now it means nothing."

The Titans were silent, watching couple in front of them, unable to imagine the boy they had always known as silent singing. Robin watched Jericho's face, looking for any trace of Trigon, of Slade. Of evil. He found none. Jericho remained one of the most unassuming heroes he had ever met. The Mel turned her gaze on them, suddenly sharp and demanding. The blade landed on the floor in front of them.

"That plan was my only hope of him living through this." She said. "It's your choice now. Kill him or spare him."


	11. Chapter 10: Uneasy Silence

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 9.**

_**"A person starts dying when they stop dreaming."**_

_**~Brian Williams**_

**Chapter 10: Uneasy Silence**

Robin stared at the blade, remembering the horror of Jericho's blood running down it into the white etchings, knowing his team was imagining the same thing.

"Well?" She asked, daring them now to make the choice she couldn't.

Robin spoke first. "How long will those two cities last?"

"It's different every time." She sounded exhausted. "But if I had to guess, until midnight."

"Give us until then to decide." Robin said. His team was still speechless. They simply nodded in assent. "Come on, Titans. Let's go back to the tower."

Just as they were rising to leave, Jericho moaned. He sat up and looked at them with tired green eyes, hazy with the remnant of whatever agony he had just endured. It was more than they could take. His team left ahead of him. Robin looked back. Jericho was comforting Mel, her waves of dark hair shaking with silent sobs. But his eyes weren't closed, nor were they wet. They were staring into Robin's, through his white lenses, telling him one thing:

_I'm ready to die._

* * *

The Titans left, still unaware of the uninvited guest. As soon as the door shut behind Robin, Slade dropped down to the stage. "Were you ever going to tell me, Joseph?"

Joseph flinched at the sound of his father's voice. But when he turned to face him, there was no fear in his gaze, just resolution. He shook his head, motioning for Slade to leave.

"Melody, I would like to speak with my son." Slade said, raw heat rising inside.

"I can't." She had dropped off the stage and was now cradling the blade Slade had watched her toss at the Titans, the same one that she had summoned while the Titans slept around her. "We sacrificed his voice into making this. He'll never get it back."

Joseph walked away, towards the kitchen, ignoring his father. That wouldn't do. "When did it happen? During Trigon's reign, he showed me where he was keeping Joseph. So when…?"

He couldn't finish. The question hung in the space between him and his son's back. The sound of boiling water, then smell of herbal tea wafted over.

Finally, Mel spoke for him. "Just before you freed him."

Jericho shot her a glare. He brought her a cup of tea anyway, body language clearly indicating that he was not going to take part in this discussion.

Accepting the cup, she continued. "Trigon appeared in his dreams a few seconds before you came and touched his forehead, drawing the Marks onto his soul. He didn't understand what had happened until later."

The anger quelled under a tide of realization and guilt. "So I did do this to you."

They didn't say anything. Joseph watched his father with very little emotion.

"What do you want me to do?" He asked. Jericho shook his head.

_Nothing._

Mel had a different answer. "When the time comes, you'll know. But for now, can you leave us alone?"

Slade tried to read his son's face, tried to figure out what was going on behind the green eyes he inherited from his mother. But as with his mother, Slade turned up nothing. There was a growing need to grab his son and run, to take him somewhere far away, somewhere safe, where he could protect his son. But he noticed something that made him think twice: Joseph's hand clenching Mel's. So instead, he left.

He made it to the door before he realized he had one last thing to say. "I'm sorry, Joseph. For everything."

The cool night air greeted him, bringing with it a single thought. Adeline was going to kill him.

Maybe he should let her.

* * *

Back at the tower, Robin didn't bother to head to his room. Instead, he found himself wandering around the tower, checking on his team. Raven hadn't thought to shut her door. She was meditating in a protective bubble, her voice shaking. Starfire is huddled under her sheets. Somewhere, an engine revved. His suspicion is confirmed when he sees the T Car isn't in the garage. Beast Boy must be with Cyborg because he is nowhere in the tower.

Then he finds himself in the training room of the tower, alone. Like always. His body goes through the motions of stretching, but his mind is elsewhere. His hands found the dials. Maximum level. Maximum time length.

The room buzzed, signaling the beginning of the training session. Discs hurled from all directions, lasers aimed for strategic escape points. He flew around the room, dodging when he could, destroying and deflecting what he couldn't. He was unarmed, but this still was too easy. This first level wasn't enough to distract him from his thoughts.

_Jericho's father was Slade. He had lost his dream because his father was Slade. He was infected with a demon because his father was Slade._

The room beeped, and attack droids swarmed him. He was fighting harder than he had ever fought before, taking all the rage he could, all the hurt and pain he could, and inflicting it on the emotionless droids. Somehow, that made him even angrier.

_He had an older brother named Grant, one that Slade trained as an apprentice. What did Grant look like? Did he resemble Jericho? Rose? Maybe even Robin? Did Slade see Grant or Jericho in me? He wondered. He can only imagine Grant's personality. It had earned him the name Ravager. One who wreaks havoc. It called to mind a younger Slade, one more reckless and eager to fight. One who would be willing to risk biological testing to further his power._

He was surrounded by piles of mechanical pieces and sparks. The timer beeped again. The floor fell in random patterns, leaving very few pieces that were safe to step on. Handholds dropped from the ceilings in intervals. One stable piece of room remained.

_Jericho, Slade. Raven, Trigon. He could see the similarities, he even marveled at the coincidence that brought everyone to this point. Trigon creating Raven, Raven helping found the Titans, Slade having children, Jericho joining the Titans, the Titans killing Slade, Slade resurrected by Trigon, Trigon making Jericho his next host. It was all interwoven, one tragic tapestry._

The floor was under him. He had never gotten to this point without help before. He didn't feel satisfied. Another beep, the floor is restored. More droids, the floor drops in very specific patterns. Discs fly across the easier landing points. His body instantly grabs onto this challenge. His mind spins out of control.

_Fathers. Trigon and Slade. Bruce. He had always thought fathers were like his own, both biological and later adopted. Supporting, overprotective, but always with love. Trigon had shaken that belief a little. And Slade… Now Slade just appeared unstable, desperate to reclaim his legacy to the point of forcing it on the teenager he most identified with._

A disc caught him across the face, sending him reeling out of control onto a dropping piece of floor. Reflexively, he reached for his belt and managed to save himself at the last minute.

_Stop thinking about it,_ he told himself. _Focus._

But he couldn't get Jericho's last look out of his head. He couldn't stop revisiting it.

_I'm ready to die._

The room beeped a final time. It took him a moment to realize the session was over. The tower's supply of droids lay at his feet.

Maybe the roof held more peace.

* * *

"What are you doing, Melody?"

"I was wondering when you'd show up." She turned to face the looming figure behind her. "Dad."

"You've made quite a mess of things here, Mel." He said. His eyes were Harmony's, his hair Melody's. His elaborate white robes made her look away, disgusted.

"So you've finally accepted their job offer."

"My children didn't give me much of a choice." He said, sounding like all the worries of the world rested on his shoulder. This irritated her.

"Are you here to arrest me, Watcher?" She spat.

"Not yet. You still have your grace period to fix the continuity of this world. I'm here to warn you." He paused, looking his daughter over. "And, as a father, I want to meet the young man that had you breaking all the rules."

Jericho walked out from behind the stage, where they had put their bedroom. He looked grim, eyeing the man. Mel was between the two in an instant. "You aren't doing anything to him."

"No, I'm not." Her father agreed, his eyes not leaving Jericho's. He extended a hand. "My name is Maitho. I'm Melody's father."

Jericho nodded, taking his hand cautiously. The older man flipped him over his shoulder casually, pressing him to the ground. "You let her endanger her safety for you."

Jericho was about to fight back, but that stopped him. Instead, he stared up at Maitho, eyes understanding. _I know._ They said. _I failed her._

Both froze at the distinct hiss of metal against leather. A thin silver blade pressed against Maitho's throat, causing him to laugh.

"You would pull a knife on your father for this boy?"

"Among other things." Mel said. "Let him go. We didn't know, and when we did I had the choice to leave. I didn't."

Maitho studied her for a moment, as if trying to identify the woman in front of him. "You're less like your mother than we feared."

He stepped away from Jericho. "Take care of her. She's given up a lot for you just now."

Jericho fixed Mel with a hard stare. She looked away.

"Shut up, it's not the same thing." She said.

A mischievous look broke out across his face. He pulled her closer. _Oh really?_

She giggled in spite of herself. "Yes!" Then, more seriously. "As far as I know, Slade finds you more important than the story you help build."

Jericho's smile faded. _Let's not talk about this._

They had one day. One final day.

* * *

Sunrise. The night had numbed his body, and the choice had eventually burned out his mind. The sky was deep pink, the horizon molten orange. It would be a beautiful sight for your last day. The sound of an engine grew louder, until it died in the garage. Robin left his spot, knowing his team would be in the living room.

Starfire was fixing breakfast. She called it Flapjacks of Deliberation. They tasted like vanilla ice cream and sweat.

"They're good, Star." Robin said. Cyborg and Beast Boy agreed.

Around nine, Raven floated in, immersed in her cloak. She joined them at the table, but didn't touch the plate Starfire placed in front of her. Her eyes were bloodshot and puffy, her voice hoarse. She must have been meditating all night.

"It's not your fault, Raven." Robin said. "If anyone understands what it's like to have a father like Trigon, it's Jericho."

Raven looked at him, her eyes clearing a little. "Thanks."

They were silent for another long moment.

Cyborg broke the silence next. "What are we going to do?"

"If we don't kill Jericho, we risk Trigon returning." Raven said.

"If we don't kill Jericho, those cities that Mel suspended don't recover." Cyborg added.

Beastboy slammed his fists on the counter. "But those both end in us killing Jericho!"

Robin suddenly remembered that Jericho had been key in winning the fight against the Brotherhood of Evil, and that Beastboy personally delivered his Titan communicator. He tried to talk the changeling down. "Or the seed Trigon implanted."

"Mel said she tried everything." Cyborg reminded him.

Robin looked at Raven. She paused putting herself back together to explain. "At this point, it's melded with his soul. Even the most delicate procedure to remove it would endanger his life. There's practically no chance of removing it."

"Then there's really no choice but to-"

"No!" Beastboy shouted. "There's always a choice, always some other way besides death! We just have to think!"

The Titans slumped.

* * *

The final hours they spent lying on the roof, hands entwined, looking at the stars. Looking for the fault in them that screwed them over. Minutes ticked by. Jericho sits up. _It's almost time._

"Don't remind me." Mel rolls over to see him better. "Are you sure?"

_Yes._

"I'm not." Jericho looks at her, surprised. What she's doing barely registers before his eyelids sink. Kissing his forehead, she whispers, "One last dream, for the road."

* * *

It was eleven. They had an hour, and they were nowhere.

"We have to face it, there's only one choice: Jericho or the World?" Robin said. His team looked at him wearily, but couldn't protest. Starfire began to cry, Raven looked about to shatter. Unable to leave her like that, Beastboy pulled the empath into a hug.

"It's like Robin said, Rave." Cyborg said. "If anyone understands, it's Jericho."

Beastboy said nothing. Even he had given up.

It was decided.

And as if on cue, metal slabs slammed over the windows. Warnings lights flashed red, and Cyborg's voice began to play, warning them to stay cool and wait out the brunt of the emergency until it was possible for them to react. The tower was in full lockdown.

"I'm sorry." Melody's voice said through the speakers. "I can't let you take him yet."

"Damn it! How'd she even get into the system?" Cyborg asked.

Robin was on his feet. A new challenge, this time with Jericho as the goal. "We need to get out and find them, Jump may be in danger."

By the time they managed to find a section weak enough for Cyborg and Starfire to blast out, they had half an hour left and a city to scour. Then he heard it, the flute music. He was off in a heartbeat, no time to think. "This way!" He called back.

"Rob, we need to split up-" Cyborg said angrily.

"I know where they are! Just follow me!"

The flute led him to the auditorium, where Jericho was unconscious on the stage and Mel was seconds away from suspending another city. Ten minutes.

"Oh no you don't!" Beastboy turned into a hawk and grabbed at the flute, but Mel deflected at the last moment. She looked around, angry, wild, ready to snap. Raven tried next, the flute glowing black for a moment before Melody's blue overpowered it.

"Get the flute!" The battle raged on, Cyborg's cannon blowing out a wall. Melody was forced to the street. Though she didn't look it, she was just as strong as Robin, and possibly just as skilled in combat.

"Where did you learn all this?" He asked, dodging a bolt of lightning. Her black trench coat flew up as she landed, and the bolt reflected off distinctive white etchings underneath.

"When you travel between dimensions for as long as I have, you pick up a lot." She replied. Dread welled in him as he caught sight of her triumphant look. She snapped. Instantly, he couldn't move. Neither, he was guessing, could his team. "Bet you didn't see me place that spell on you, did you?"

Four minutes.

She raised the flute to her lips.

* * *

**A/n: For those of you who are curious, the rules Maitho mentions are now posted on my profile, which has turned into a Wikipedia page in progress on Melody's family.**

**Also, the psychology of Slade has always fascinated me. His obsession with apprentices, the background the cartoon never mentions, it all points to a man with an obsession with his legacy. It's almost scary how mentally unstable he becomes in context…**


	12. Chapter 11: Jericho Falls

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 10.**

_**"So wise so young, they say, do never live long."  
~William Shakespeare**_

**Chapter 11: Jericho Falls**

Then the flute was gone, landing a few hundred feet away. Jericho stood, looking a little groggy but determined. He fixed his eyes on Mel, whose confusion had quickly turned to grief.

Two minutes.

Robin realized with growing apprehension that a crowd had formed around them. They were muttering excitedly, not quite sure what was going on. But Robin knew all too well what was going to happen, and right now he only wished that the two young children near the front of the crowd were not present to witness it.

Jericho hugged her tightly, then pushed her out to arm's length, staring directly into her tear-filled eyes. With a shaky hand, she drew the blade from beneath her coat. The crowd had gone still. To Robin's relief, the mother of the children had covered their eyes and was now pulling them back through the crowd.

It happened very quickly and without warning. A red pulse of electric power snaked between the demon-killing blade and Mel, exploding. The blade fell far away from any of the Titans, and Mel was thrown in the opposite direction, where she remained, motionless except for the residual red electricity.

Time's up.

Jericho's eyes were wide with surprise, then with pain. His mouth opened to a silent scream, but instead the Marks of Scath appeared on his arms and legs and forehead. He rose in the air, much like Raven had.

Trigon was coming.

Robin still couldn't move.

The horror of the sight of Jericho's eyes splitting into four glowing red slits and his obvious agony had made him forget that there was absolutely no sound. It took the faint scrape of metal on concrete for him to remember. Slade had picked up the blade. He was walking towards his son, who hung suspended above the ground. Apparently, Jericho had heard this as well, because he blinked. For a moment, his wide green eyes returned. He mouthed something Robin wished he couldn't make out.

_Kill me._

Slade stood for a moment, paralyzed by uncertainty and regret and whatever it was that reminded him that he was a father. Then Jericho's eye disappeared and Trigon's returned. The Marks of Scath lifted off Jericho's body, preparing to form the three red rings. Jericho let one last silent scream.

It was enough. Slade stiffened, resolved. One lunge, just like the one Mel had done in the dream. The blade slid into Jericho's heart, and his blood dripped down the blade. Red blood. Human blood.

The red light disappeared in an instant. Jericho falls from his suspension into the blade, held up by his father. His arms wrap around Slade.

"Thank you." He mouths.

Jericho's arms go limp.

Slade lays him down like he would a small child, like he must have when Jericho was younger. The blade is still in his hand, covered in his son's blood. Actually, it had leaked everywhere: down his chest, onto his arms, a few smears on his mask. For a moment, Slade stares at the blood, then at his son.

Sharp whispers rose around them. The crowd had found its voice again.

Slade whips around, now aware there are people watching. His eyes meet with Robin's momentarily. Then he is gone, dashing through the back alley.

He had been crying.

Mel wails. She had just gotten up just in time to see her boyfriend killed. She's by the body now, sobbing. Robin can move again.

The sound of a jet comes from behind. Raven, wrapped in black energy, had taken off.

The remaining Titans gather around the body of their friend.

Aside from the gash on his heart, Jericho looks at peace. Robin stifles the urge to laugh. Only Jericho could make this amount of blood look peaceful. Starfire pulls Mel into a hug. Cyborg puts a hand on Beast Boy's quivering shoulders. Mel's gasps had subsided to deep, controlled breaths. She pulls away from Starfire, blue light spilling out of the corners of her eyes like mist, and said in an earth-shaking voice, "Return."

Jericho's body glows blue-white, then, in a burst, blue-white mist escapes from the boy. It fills the street, billowing out and up. Robin stood in complete awe, he could hear the whispers of thousands of dreams slipping past his grasp. It separates into individual blue wisps that float up to the sky. He wondered vaguely how they would look from below, the schools of dreams swimming back to relight the city and awaken their creators.

Melody was sobbing again. Reality snaps back into place.

Robin kneels down and picks up Jericho's body. He begins to walk away. "Titans," he says in as steady a voice as he could manage, "Let's get our fallen friend back to the Tower."

In his haze, he's aware that he passes a live camera crew. That doesn't matter now. It's hard for anything to matter now.

Jericho is dead.


	13. Chapter 12: Mourning

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 11.**

"_**It is a curious thing, the death of a loved one. We all know that our time in this world is limited, and that eventually all of us will end up underneath some sheet, never to wake up. And yet it is always a surprise when it happens to someone we know. It is like walking up the stairs to your bedroom in the dark, and thinking there is one more stair than there is. Your foot falls down, through the air, and there is a sickly moment of dark surprise as you try and readjust the way you thought of things."**_

_**~Lemony Snicket**_

**Chapter 12: Mourning**

Numbness. That was the name he gave the state he was now in. His world was crumbling, his emotions were in turmoil, each new wave washing up a pang of grief or anger, and all he could do was set himself on autopilot. One step after another, purely mechanical.

Mel refused to let anyone help her clean the body. Robin didn't push it. What was left of his team sat in the living room, devoid of life.

What do you do between the moment of death and the funeral?

He knew what he should do. He sat at his terminal, summoning the call key labeled FOR EMERGENCY CONTACT.

Everywhere, across the world, Titans heard the signal. Their communicators answered to speakerphone immediately.

"Calling all Titans." Was he really that calm? He didn't feel that calm. "Joseph Wilson, also known as Jericho, died a few minutes ago."

This was greeted by the static noise of shock creeping across the world.

"The funeral will be held within the week. Expect to be updated as soon as his family sets the date. Robin out."

Starfire floated past him carrying a black suit with a shiny purple tie. She noticed him watching her. "Melody sent me to get these."

He nodded for her to continue. How long had they planned for Jericho's death? How did it feel, knowing that every second slipping away was one second closer to the end? Robin couldn't even begin to imagine.

* * *

Bruce didn't know how to react. For a moment, Dick's voice echoed through the Bat Cave. Dick's team, the thing that had become his life's work, had lost a friend. Jericho. The name sounded familiar.

"Master Bruce?" Alfred must have heard. "Was that Master Richard's voice I heard just now?"

"Ye-" He was cut off by an alarm. Arkham was on fire.

* * *

Worlds away, Melody had just finished knotting the purple tie Joe had picked out, trying not remember the heartbreaking look he had on his face when he held the tie he would be buried in. A draft swirled around her, lifting her wavy hair. She paused, listening. The sound of burning, of tears, of war cries and of mourning. The sound of the world lurching out from under them.

"Well, Joe," she said. A single tear leaked out of her eye, which she hastily wiped away. "It's begun."

* * *

Death.

In the slow clockwork of arranging a funeral, this was all anyone could think about. Robin watched, detached, as his Titans arrived, one by one, awaiting the moment where they would pay their final respects to a teammate. Each of them wandered around the tower listlessly, eyes haunted.

They were teenagers, death shouldn't be able to touch them. They were the future, death didn't have the right to take that away. They were young. They were invincible.

But Jericho had shattered that notion. Jericho, who should have had his entire life ahead of him, lay wrapped in death's palm. His body was in one of the tower's spare rooms, awaiting the coffin that would be his final resting place. And of course it was Jericho, the gentle pacifist that no one thought was a hero at first glance, who bore the honor of being the first to die. None of the Titans save Melody had visited his room.

Robin moved to change that. The room was dark, a single cone of light encircling the table with Jericho's body. Melody had finished cleaning and dressing him, arms straight by his side, green eyes closed forever, the serene look of acceptance still on his face.

"Come to prove your bravery, Boy Wonder?" Mel's voice was raspy. She must have been crying again.

"I've come to see him."

"To face the responsibility?" She asked bitterly. He could see her now, eyes red and puffy, crouching in a way that made her look like a wild cat. "To see what death looks like on someone who didn't deserve it?"

"No." He said, calmly. "To say goodbye, and to say I'm sorry."

"You better be sorry. He was so caught up in your ideals, your goals, that he endured his soul being ripped apart." Robin could only watch her with a pitying expression. Seeing this, she drew a long, shuddering breath, forcing herself back together. Suddenly, she looked like a woman with a mission, and Robin felt a terrible sense of foreboding. Her dark blue eyes locked onto his. "Tell me, Robin, is what you do worth asking this from teenagers?"

He broke eye contact, only to realize that it meant looking at Jericho's body. Her question wrapped itself around his mind, twisting deep into his conscious. He couldn't find the words to answer her, they didn't exist yet.

* * *

Joseph Wilson's mother, Robin learns, is Adeline Kane. He found himself, in the hours before Joseph's funeral, wondering how she had managed to fall in love with Slade. He wondered if she regretted it now, as she shook so violently with sobs that she had to lean on Rose for support.

In the hours before the funeral, he took to noticing the little things. Anything to distract him from the open casket containing Joseph Wilson's body. He noted that Joseph had inherited his mother's eyes, though she was a brunette, which meant Slade was once blond. He saw that Rose's roots were the same brown as her mother's. She must have been bleaching it white. A man with clean-cut white hair and an eye patch had slipped. He watched Adeline from afar, eyes unreadable. None of this mattered.

Then there was Melody, who had not left Joseph's side, not even after death. Who could no longer cry. Melody, dark and empty and alluring because of it. In her black dress and black veil, her startling dark blue eyes to gained a soft indigo tint. The only bit of color she wore was a ring on a chain around her neck: a simple silver ring with a small flash of blue fire. Simple, but very clearly an engagement ring. Much to the dismay of many of the men here, Melody was beyond consolation: she was untouchable with her stiff demeanor and cold eyes free of tears. She was the unforgiving widow.

At the funeral itself, it became clear that the reverend didn't know how to begin, and that Rose and Adeline couldn't speak through their tears. Melody remained unmoving, staring at the coffin that held her lover.

Robin took the podium. "I knew Joseph Wilson as Jericho." He began. His voice rang out into the silence. His audience was drinking up his every word. "He was a dear friend, and a pacifist at heart, but a hero by choice. He hated fighting, but when I needed him, when the world needed him, he was willing to put aside his feelings and join us in protecting this world. And in the end, he did what only a true hero is willing to do: he put aside his life to save the world. For this, I honor Joseph Wilson. I respect him. I will remember him for the rest of my life as a true hero."

He stepped down. A standing ovation. How strange, he thought, isn't the world against teen superheroes right now? His speech had been short. He hadn't mentioned the Titans. Joseph Wilson was beyond the Titans now.

Two more speeches, one by Beast Boy, and one by Rose. Both were applauded, but really they had been about Jericho, not Joseph. The pall-bearers marched up, took his coffin to his final resting place.

The grave, Robin found out, was in the cave below his island and tower. The same cave where Terra had killed Slade and turned to stone, though her statue was gone. A spotlight, a glass case containing Jericho's costume serving as a headstone. He vaguely remembers arranging this at some point with Adeline. Only he, his Titans, and Rose and Adeline and Melody were present for the burial. Raven showed at last, lower the casket into the grave with her powers. The boys took shovels and buried him.

They were done too soon. The last shovel full of dirt, smoothing the grave, it was over too quickly. Rose set down a huge wreath of Tibetan wildflowers Raven had given her. The gesture was final. All there was left to do was stare helplessly at the grave. And cry. One by one, the Titans released their emotions. They allowed themselves to mourn.

Robin stared at the newly laid grave. A list of facts rolled through his head.

_This is Jericho's grave. Jericho died a Titan. Jericho died to save the earth from Mel and from Trigon. I'm the reason he was a Titan. I couldn't save him. I couldn't kill him. Jericho is dead._

And finally, Robin could cry as well.


	14. Chapter 13: Alienation

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 12.**

_**"Someday you're gonna look back on this moment of your life as such a sweet time of grieving. You'll see that you were in mourning and your heart was broken, but your life was changing..."  
~ Elizabeth Gilbert**_

**Chapter 13: Alienation**

They left the graveside, one by one, with no more tears to shed and no more ways to say goodbye. First Cyborg, then Starfire. Raven. Beastboy. Adeline, led out by Rose. Finally it was just Robin and Melody, alone with Joseph Wilson.

"I want an answer, Robin." She said. Her voice was clear, serious, completely different from earlier. It took him a moment to remember what she had asked him, and when he did recall he took another minute trying to form an answer.

He realized slowly that, once again, he couldn't. She watched him with her cold, dark blue eyes. "If you don't have an answer to that question, how do you expect to continue being a hero?"

"I don't know." His voice cracked. He had cried longer than he had expected. He felt the air stir, she was moving.

"You had better come up with one."

"Where are you going?"

"I have a job to do."

That didn't sound good. He whirled around, but she was gone. He raced upstairs to find his team, what was left of it, watching the news.

"Where's-"

"Raven?" Beastboy finished, sounding agitated. "I don't know. She left the tower and hasn't come back or answered her communicator."

"I told you, when she wants to come back, she will." Cyborg said, earning him a glare from the changling, "but until then we have another issue."

Robin followed Cyborg's gaze to the TV screen. The news was on, and Adeline's sobbing form dominated it. "They're using him as an example."

"Of course they are, Rob," Cyborg said bitterly, "It fits their agenda perfectly. A teenage superhero dying. It times perfectly to what they're saying."

"Have they shown his death yet?" Robin asked, remembering the camera crew.

"No, but they're going to. They've been giving the graphic image warning for the past hour."

Robin cursed. "Everyone will be watching."

The news flashes to a reporter. "Jericho will be missed." She says. "As we have been saying for the past few hours, we do have footage from the boy's tragic death, and they will be shown. However, we must warn that the content is extremely disturbing and is not meant for our younger viewers. Again, feel free to change the channel, as the footage we will show is extremely violent."

"No one is going to want to change the channel now." Beastboy muttered, shushed by Cyborg. Starfire holds a pillow up, unwilling to relive that horrible, helpless moment.

The reporter continues. "But before we broadcast Jericho's death, we have another, brighter story. New York City, after seven days of lost contact, has finally been put back on the map. We go to our travelling reporter, Wanda Prentice, who is live on scene. Wanda?"

The screen goes to an ordinary-looking woman, who, for some reason, wore a safari cap and dark green outdoor gear, despite obviously being in the middle of a city. "Thank you, Ashley. As you can see, New York City has inexplicably returned to life, though we have as of yet to determine what caused the week long absence. Early reports indicate that whatever happened merely put the city in a coma-like state."

The camera pans over to the street, following the now moving crowds and normal-colored buildings. The people in the street had a dazed look about them, like they were waking from heavy sedation. Conversation was muted, as if no one was quite sure what was going on.

"As far as we can tell, the city just picked up where it left off a week ago." A strange look crossed her face. "Apparently the street performers have started once again. Do you hear that music, Dave?"

The camera shakes back and forth slightly.

"Not very professional, are they?" Cyborg asked.

"They look like documentary makers." Beastboy dismissed.

Robin didn't pay them any attention. He was hoping that his growing suspicion was wrong.

Prentice's voice drifted, "It sounds like a lullaby…"

The world stops behind her, the color leaching out of the air. She blinks, but her eyes don't reopen. Her dark green safari shirt is now a shade of slate. Dave the camera guy whipped around, clearly freaking out as his world goes gray.

"Dave." He wasn't wrong. That voice proved it. "I want to send you home to your family. Will you help me?" The camera gives one last vertigo-inducing whirl, catching a flash of blue in the blacks and grays. Mel stood, still wearing her black net veil, but now back in her black trench coat and steel-toed boots. The camera bobs.

"My name is Melody. I have been taking your cities. I took them to save my fiancé, Joseph. He died two days ago, he gave his life to be a true hero." Robin winced at the use of his words. "He wasn't eighteen. He didn't deserve his death."

She broke eye contact with the camera to look around. Dave followed her gaze. "But I'm taking them back. Not to save Joseph, but to save every other teenager and child who thinks becoming a superhero is about glory and honor. It's not. It's about sacrifice, but they don't know that. Ban child heroes. You have one week. Every day you wait, I will take another city at random. And if you aren't decided by the end of your seven days…" Her eyes are on the camera now. No, they were on Robin, piercing through his mask. "I'm waiting for an answer."

There is a flash of blue light, and the camera cuts off. The reporter is back, looking immensely disturbed. The station scrambles to recover.

"We have to stop her!" Cyborg says, moving to leave. His team follows.

"Do we?" Robin hadn't moved at all.

Beastboy gave him a disbelieving stare. "Of course we do. She's gone crazy! She's a bad guy now, and we stop bad guys!"

"No, she isn't a bad guy. She lost her fiancé to us. Do we have the right to stop her?"

"You've got to be joking. Rob, the girl just threatened to end the world!" Cyborg said. But they had stopped to wait for him. Robin, alone in the spotlight.

"Do we even deserve to stop her?"

"Are you even listening to yourself?" Cyborg asked. Then dark realization spread over his face. "You knew."

So much accusation and anger in two words, and he could do nothing to ease them. "I knew."

"And you did nothing to stop her?" Starfire.

"Jericho's dead, Melody's crazy, Raven's gone, and we're chopped liver." Cyborg said, anger building with each new word. "Well, Rob? What did you think would happen?"

Still in the spotlight, still unable to form an answer. Not one for Melody, not one for his team. He saw the gleam of disappointment in his best friend's eyes. "We can't trust you anymore, Robin. Turn in your communicator. I'm relieving you of your position as our leader."

Robin gave him the communicator. Starfire began to cry, Beastboy looked away.

"Whose side are you on, anyway?" Cyborg asked as Robin walked to the door. He was staring at Robin's communicator like he could hardly believe it was in his hand rather than Robin's.

Robin didn't say anything. He didn't have anything to say, and he was beginning to wonder if he ever had.

* * *

Jump City had never looked bleaker from above. When had these low gray clouds blown in?

"You look like you could use a pick-me-up."

Slade.

"You're one to talk." Robin felt a heavy hand on his shoulder. Startled, he looked up at Slade, who wouldn't quite meet his gaze.

"So how about it?" He said. "A pick-me-up."

Robin knew what he meant, and reluctantly got to his feet. Slade walked across the roof and jumped off, Robin close behind. They arrived at the cave shortly after. Robin took off his good shoes, his jacket, then his nice white shirt and red tie, wishing he had thought to change before leaving the tower. He fell into his normal defensive stance, Slade stood motionless. Then he attacks, quick as lightning. Robin dodged, and dodged again, and again. Slade was quick, but there was none of his precision and all of his desperate rage. It was all Robin could do to dodge.

But his eyes pick them up: the moments where Slade left himself open. It only takes one punch. Robin side-steps, grabs Slade's wrist with his left and sends his right elbow into Slade's chest. Then he sends a leg sweeping under Slade, who is on the ground in seconds. Robin stands over him, pretending the heaving breaths Slade is taking are from the cracked ribs he had just received.

"I won't spar with you if you continue on like this," he says.

Slade's breathing steadies. "Like what?"

And he launches out again, catching Robin under the jaw and sending him flying. Before Robin can steady himself, Slade appears next to him with one downward-sweeping kick. The hard packed cave dirt feels like cement, but anything would at that speed. Robin is on his feet and dashing sideways before the pain entirely disorients him. Slade is on his heels, and, without thinking, he pushed off the ground backwards to whip a kick around. His leg made contact with bone.

Just as he was preparing to follow with another kick, Slade's fist came around and caught his sternum. Robin could barely breathe, much less effectively block the next four jabs to his chest and face. Still, it would take a lot more to bring him down.

He didn't know how long they continued to fight like this. It could have been hours, and it felt like days, but eventually they wound down. Robin could feel the heaviness in each punch, the screaming pain in his left leg, which he was pretty sure was broken. He could barely see out of his right eye, and every heavy breath reminded him that over half of his ribs were broken. Slade was faring just as badly, maybe even worse. The old man's stamina couldn't be what it once was, and Robin was reaching his own physical peak.

In a final surge of determination, he feigned a punch only to drop into a kick that sent Slade flying. He landed on his back, unable to will himself back up. Robin relaxed, which turned out to be a mistake because without adrenaline he was completely disoriented with pain. Staggering, he found a wall to lean against, trying to catch his breath and not collapse at the same time.

"I lost." Slade said. He began to laugh hysterically. He was laughing so hard his voice was ragged and his entire body shuddered. Robin couldn't watch. There was a dull clang, Slade's mask had landed at Robin's feet, staring up at him with a single, hollow socket. He looked over in surprise. Slade's face was lined, his beard and hair solid white. Robin looked away quickly. He was never meant to see his archenemy like this. But then, Slade was hardly his archenemy at this moment. Right now he was just a man who had killed his only remaining son.

"You idiots." Melody stood at the mouth of the cave, still wearing a black trench coat and black net veil. She kneeled by Robin. "Damage report?"

"You should tend to him first." Robin said.

She looked him in the eye. "You know pain helps. Now, tell me which ribs are broken." He gasped when she pressed down on his chest. "Hmm. All of them. How are you still conscious?"

"Stubbornness." He grunted. It felt like she was filling his chest with ice, but he could breathe freely again. "Where'd you learn to do that?"

"Both shoulders?" He nodded reluctantly. "When we first found out what was going on with Jericho, I left to find out if there was a solution from another world. In one I met an old healer who practically beat all this healing knowledge into me. She was an old loon, but I owe her everything." She examined his hand. "Your right will take a while, you've managed to shatter it."

"Sounds like a familiar story." He said through gritted teeth, the bones and muscles in his hand contorted under his skin, piecing themselves back together. Putting his hand down, she moved on to his legs. He flexed his newly mended arm. "She taught you well."

"Not like I had a choice. She made sure I learned. Oops, accidentally switched your feet."

"What?" He sat up too quickly, making the world swim away before his eyes.

She chuckled. "I'm kidding. Like I could do that. You're done for now, I'll fix the concussion later." She moved towards Slade.

"If you came over here to fix me up," Slade rasped, "don't."

Mel looked down at him, expressionless. "What are you going to do? Glare me to death?"

Slade coughed out a laugh. "Maybe."

She leaned over him, starting with his abdomen. "He inherited your glare, you know. He almost never used it, but when he did..."

"Actually, he got that from Adeline."

"Also, this liver of yours hasn't been taken care of. You should fix that."

"Why would I want to do that? The only reason you're able heal me right now is because that boy over there shattered my legs and tore my arm ligaments. I couldn't move if I wanted to."

"He told me to make sure you didn't give up." Mel said steadily. She moved up to his rib cage. Slade didn't protest again. He didn't move until she was done. She straightened, stretched, then walked to the mouth of the cave. "Get up. We have work to do."

"Why should I?" Slade asks. "I thought my part in your little game was over?"

She doesn't deny it. "Watch the world burn with me." She says. "What else have you got to do?"

He gets up to follow. She looks at Robin. "Are you coming?"

"I still don't trust you."

"Fair enough." She glanced at her watch. "Actually, you should probably get a move on it. Batman should just be returning to his cave. You should give him a call."

"What. Did. You. Do?" Robin asked, every threat he could think of packed into his voice.

"I didn't do anything, which is more than I can say for Jason."

Her tone froze his blood. Slade eyed his potential daughter-in-law with a new respect. They leave Robin in the dark, alone. He can hear her whistling a low tune, one that sounded like a warning.

* * *

The Tower still accepted his code to let him in, but as luck would have it, Cyborg was in the living room.

"I thought we kicked you out," he said before he got a good look at Robin, "Christ, man, did you get into a street brawl with Slade again?"

Melody had kindly forgotten to heal his surface wounds, and Robin knew he couldn't look good. But that didn't matter now. "I just need to call someone."

Without waiting for permission, he entered his code on his terminal and hit speed dial. The screen showed the ringing icon. Robin tapped his fingers. "Come on, come on, pick up." He muttered.

Alfred's face lit up the screen. "Master Richard, am I glad to-" his eyes widened, "Dear lord, are you alright?"

"It looks much worse than it is." Robin said impatiently. "Where's Bruce? Is everything okay?"

"There's been a massive breakout at Arkham." Alfred said. "Master Bruce and Master Todd have gone out to clean up."

An engine roared and died in the background. "You're in luck, I believe that that's them right-" Alfred's voice faltered.

Bruce's voice, desperate, "Has Jason been here?"

"No."

"Who are you tal- Dick? Is that you? You look like hell." Batman appeared on screen. His cape was torn, his costume covered in ragged, singed holes. The skin Robin could see was bloody.

"You're one to talk." He said. "What happened?"

Bruce's eyes turned wild. His sentences came out in disjointed bursts. "Arkham exploded. Mass outbreak. We were fighting them back in, but then the Joker took a bystander hostage. I don't even know why that girl was there, but she was. Somehow, Jason had a gun, and, well, he shot him. Missed, hit the girl. Took off. I can't find him." Bruce collapsed in his chair.

"I'll be there in a few hours." Robin said. "Alfred?"

"I'll do my best, but I don't know if he'll sit still long enough to get patched up."

Robin nodded, then turned the screen off. He whirled around, raced to his room before Cyborg could say anything. His room, his closet thrown open. A clean costume thrown on. He had to hurry. Bruce needed him. He turned to run out of the room, only to slam into Cyborg's chest.

"Where are you going? What happened?"

"It's none of your business. Get out of the way." Robin could feel his split lip open again. Cyborg's eye flicked to it with mild concern, but he stood firm.

"Mel told you, didn't she? She's trying to separate us."

"I said get out of my way."

"It's a trap, Rob! Why can't you see that!"

Robin had enough. He kicked Cyborg's legs from under him and flipped him over his shoulder. "Sorry, Cy, but it's a family thing."

"ARGH! GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE-"

"I'm taking the jet!" Robin called back, with the mad urge to laugh. He was behind the controls in seconds, jamming a computer chip with an override program he had created in case this ever happened. The system accepted his code, becoming independent from the Titans' system. He typed in Wayne Manor's landing strip coordinates.

Dick Grayson was going home.

* * *

**A/n: The vague paragraph, the one before you knew Slade wanted to spar, I know what you thought. And it's okay, but if that's what you want you'll have to find a different author. (Please excuse me, I've been pulling all-nighters again…)**

**On another note, I no longer have the next chapter written out already, so there might be longer periods between updates. I doubt it, but it's a possibility.  
**


	15. Chapter 14: The House That Built Me

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 13.**

"_**Your sibling, after all, is the only other person in the world who understands how fucked up your parents made you."  
~Deb Caletti**_

**Chapter 14: The House That Built Me  
**

Five minutes to the Manor, and a call that wasn't from the Tower catches Dick's eye. He answers.

"Jason, is that you?"

There was a pause, then, "Yeah. It's me." Another pause. It seemed as if the younger boy was having difficulty speaking. "Dick, can you pick me up?"

"Sure. Send me your coordinates. Oh, and Jason? Can I send a message to Alfred just so he knows you're alive?"

The other boy hesitated.

"I won't tell him where you are."

This set him at ease. "Yeah, go ahead. I don't want Bruce killing himself to find me."

"I'm on my way, Jason. Hang in there."

* * *

Slade glanced around, amused. "Quite a crowd you've attracted."

Mel smirked. "I seem to have that affect."

Surrounding them were Gotham's baddest baddies, the craziest, most dangerous crowd anyone could think of, stacked three stories high. And they were all very pissed. The Joker started.

"So you're the obnoxious little shit that played that goddamn lullaby. I don't know about the rest of these freaks, but I don't enjoy being forced straight."

Slade chuckled. "What did you do to them?"

"Not much, just a little spell that made it impossible for them to act on their impulses for a few days." Mel said.

The crowd's roars grew louder. "Should we be worried?"

"What do you think?" She summoned her flute. The resulting song sounded like something that should have been played hard and fast on an electric guitar. Slade watches, but not her. Watching the musician is far less interesting than watching the audience, though this particular audience chilled his blood. In the span of the song, they went from angry to slack-jawed to a slow, wicked grin. They sauntered off, presumably to find some mayhem to cause.

The Joker paused and threw a look back at Mel. "Now that's more to my tune, sweetheart." And cackled as he walked away.

"I'm impressed." Slade said. "This is much larger than your little demonstrations in Jump."

"I didn't have this before." She patted the hilt of the knife that killed Jericho. "It absorbed the power Trigon's seed had amassed. With this much power," she grinned, "this world can burn eternally."

"Well aren't you the devious little villainess?" He said, almost affectionately. "Are you sure Joseph was your soulmate?"

Mel's mouth set back into a hard line. "Joe wasn't all innocence and light."

"I suppose not. After all, he chose you."

She began to walk away. "We should set up shop."

* * *

"You're not going to ask me what happened?" Jason asked. He was lying on the roof of Dick's pod in the jet, which was currently dwarfing the truckstop/gas station they were parked next to. Dick threw a cold soda at his younger adopted brother.

"Talk about it if you want to talk about it, Jason. I'm not going to push you." He jumped up to sit on the wing.

"I can't tell if you're a horrible older brother or an amazing one."

Dick smiled. "I try."

They were silent for another few minutes. Dick waited, knowing Jason was working up the courage to face his actions.

"I shot someone." And the wall Jason built around that fact crumbled. "I shot a little girl. I was supposed to save her! I've been looking for a chance to shoot that bastard, any chance, and he gave me one. But I missed! I killed someone else, and he's alive." Jason stops ranting suddenly. Then, "Do you ever think about shooting someone?"

Dick rubs the scar on his shoulder. "Yes."

"Why haven't you?"

"I guess it's more habit than anything else." Dick takes a sip of his soda. "I started out as a circus performer. Guns never factored into my life. In my first year as Robin, I idolized Bruce so much that whatever morals he had, I followed religiously."

Jason studies him for a minute. "It's easy." He says quietly. "So easy you won't believe. All you need is to squeeze the trigger, and there's one less scumbag to worry about roaming the streets."

Dick pauses mid-sip to look up at Jason. The younger boy reaches behind him and throws something black at Dick. He catches the gun. Everything about it, its weight, its color, how it was still warm from Jason's back and from firing, felt wrong in Dick's hand.

"I knew it." Jason says. "You're just like Bruce. No wonder he compares me to you all the time."

"He doesn't."

"Maybe not out loud, but in his mind. I can see it."

"That's just Bruce's stone silence."

"Whatever." Jason reaches down for the gun. Dick shakes his head.

"Sorry, Jason, but-"

"You know you're proving my point, right?" Jason sighs, throwing himself back on the pod. "He's going to fire me, isn't he?"

"No. Batman needs a Robin. You proved that." Jason rolled his eyes, but the corners of his mouth twitched. "Though he'll probably put you on probation."

"Hey!" A loud, angry voice yelled. Dick looked over to see the gas station manager striding towards them. "You can't park that thing here!"

In a flash, Dick and Jason jump into the cockpit and take off before the man could take another step towards them. As they speed across the night sky, they share a glance, and they simultaneously break out laughing. How many times had they pulled the same move on Bruce to go joy riding? If nothing else, this is what truly made them brothers. But the laughter fades fast, and Jason became more and more restless as they approached Wayne Manor. By the time Dick landed, his younger brother was morose and unresponsive. Alfred greeted them at the cave.

"Master Richard. It's good to see you in the flesh again."

"Good to see you, too, Alfred. Where's-?"

"Dick." Bruce walked over, looking fierce despite the multiple layers of bandages. "Are you the one that told him to hold me here? Do you know how- Jason?" Relief flooded Bruce's face as he spotted the teen reluctantly sidling into the cave. "Thank god. You are in so much trouble."

"Yeah, I expected as much." But Dick could see the boy's shoulders relax.

Bruce's featured hardened. "Where's the gun?"

"I have it." Dick said.

"Jason, go to your room. I have matters to discuss with Dick."

The younger boy glanced back and forth between his adopted father and his adopted brother. "Yeah, sure."

Bruce's eyes flash to him. "Don't think you're not in serious trouble, Dick just managed to get himself in deeper trouble than you."

Jason goes cold. "I get it. I'm going."

"You didn't have to say it like that, Bruce." Dick said as soon as his brother left. "You know he already feels threatened by me."

"Why are you here?"

Dick sighed. If he wanted to have his opinion ignored, he would have stayed at the tower. "Have you been watching the news lately?"

"Alfred filled me in the two hours I spent waiting here for you. Why aren't you with your team?"

"I was kicked out."

"What happened?" Was that concern?

"I knew Mel wasn't done. I'm probably the reason she isn't done. Shouldn't you be checking on Jason?"

"Don't change the subject, Dick."

"Before the funeral, she asked me if being a hero was worth asking teenagers to sacrifice their life for."

"And?"

"And I couldn't give her an answer."

This seemed to surprise Bruce. "You don't have an answer for that?"

"No!" Dick started pacing. "It never crossed my mind that they wouldn't want to, or even have to, sacrifice themselves. I guess I thought that if you wanted to be a hero, you would have decided that on your own already. I mean, I started the Titans on accident. One minute I'm working together with a bunch of other teenagers to stop an alien invasion, the next I'm the official leader of a hero group. Then we got a Tower, and communicators, and it kept growing and growing. And now this."

"This is a deep mess, but it brings me back to my original question: Why are you here?"

"I got a call-"

"You called us first."

He knows. He's going to make me say it. "Mel told me to."

"And your first reaction is to follow her lead?"

"I don't know what else to do."

"Stop her."

Oh, the eternal boiling frustration Bruce inspired. Dick almost missed it. "She's here."

"How do you know?"

"She told me." Sort of, he was guessing based on her wording and what happened directly after her last warning, but Bruce didn't need to know that. "So I came here. Well, she was only part of the reason I came here. You need me here now."

At that, Bruce actually smiled. "I knew that. With Jason out of commission and Arkham gone, I need my old Robin back."

Leaning in the shadow of the door, Jason felt his stomach drop. He was just about to run away, to leave Wayne Manor for good, when Dick's voice rooted him to the spot.

"No, I'm not coming back as your Robin. You've already found my replacement, and frankly, I should have ended my claim to the title years ago."

Bruce didn't respond at first, and Jason could only imagine the calculating look Dick was under. "Fine." Jason could hear the disappointment. "Your room should still be as you left it."

Dick walked out of the door, not pausing or showing the slightest bit of surprise to see Jason waiting for him. He nods for Jason to follow him. When they're out of earshot of the Batcave, Jason asks. "Why did you do that?"

"Because it's true, Jason, you're Robin now. That much anyone can see."

"Even Bruce?"

"Especially Bruce." They had reached Dick's door. He hesitated before turning the handle, bracing himself for the wave of memories from his time as Robin. And, as the smell of his old training clothes and metal polish assailed him, they came in a wall that knocked him into a daze. _Home._

"If I'm Robin," Jason's voice followed him in, "then who are you?"

And back to reality it was. "I'll let you know when I figure that out. Jas, I'm going to shower and change, but I'll talk to you after, okay? Go see Alfred for those wounds."

"Whatever, bro," but Dick heard the grudging respect in his voice.

The shower was hot, luxurious compared to those he had at the Titan's Tower. He could barely feel the nicks and bruises under its pressure. Stepping out, he was faced by a dilemma. What was he going to wear? He opened one drawer he vaguely remembers holding clothes. How much had he grown in nearly three years? Everything he found was too tight around the chest, a few inches too short. There was a knock.

"Dick? Good, you're wearing a towel." Jason stepped in, now in normal clothes that didn't cover all of the bandages Alfred had wrapped. He tosses the older boy a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt. "Alfred sent me up with some of my clothes. He figured you wouldn't find any your size up here."

"Thanks." Jason turns away as he dresses. "About earlier. I am here to talk if you need me."

He considers this for a moment. Then, "How do you come to terms with killing someone?"

Dick places a hand on his younger brother's shoulder. "You don't. You feel guilt, you feel sorrow, you take them and put them in the deepest recesses of your mind, and you live on."

"That's terrible." Jason said with a slight smile.

Dick shrugs. "That's the price you pay."

The smile disappears as Jason's face turns to ice. "The Joker doesn't pay. Two-Face doesn't pay."

"And they get put behind bars."

"They don't deserve to live on."

"No, but killing them just kills another part of you."

Jason looked uncertain. "I guess."

"You should get some sleep, Jas."

"Yeah, right."

"Goodnight."

Dick watches him go, then turns to find his father. Bruce was still in the Batcave, monitoring the city's slow progress back into hell.

"You're still awake, Dick?"

"So are you. Bruce, how long has Jason been having homicidal thoughts?"

"What?"

"You didn't know? Of course you didn't know. Bruce, Jason isn't me. I mean, you trained him like me, and he's done well, but you have to remember how you picked him up. He was a street kid, and though he's essentially good, he's confused. He needs more guidance."

Bruce studies his first son. When had he grown up? "You're right, but now's not the time."

"When is the time, Bruce?" Dick asked, waving his arms in frustration. "How long are you going to put Jason on the back burner?" He gives a frustrated sigh and stalks off to the garage. "Is my motorcycle still there?"

"You're going out like that?" Bruce eyes the black leather jacket and jeans his son is wearing. No sign of any form of protection could be detected other than the steel-toed boots.

"I'm not going to get killed. She wants me alive."

Before he can say anything skeptical, Dick's gone. A motorcycle engine starts in the background, echoing in the Gotham City night.

"He's right about Master Jason." Alfred said.

"I know." But despite what Dick had said, Jason would have to wait. At least until morning. Bruce opens the call he had been in the middle of before Dick had walked in. Superman appeared back on screen. "Clark, what are we going to do?"

"They're our responsibility, Bruce. They were our sidekicks first." He said grimly. "And I think it's time we retake that responsibility."

"They're not going to like it."

"What choice do we have?"

* * *

The cool night air rushed over him, he was going much faster than he should. His engine roared, obeying his every tilt. It was the closest feeling Dick had to flying save the midnight runs between skyscrapers. It was freedom, but it gave him time to think.

All that talk about not putting your partners on the backburner had left a bitter taste in Dick's mouth. He had realized halfway through that that is exactly what he had done with his team. No wonder they kicked him out.

Then there was Jason's question.

_If I'm not Robin, then who am I?_

* * *

**A/n: I admit to shamelessly stealing this title from one of the few country songs I like (if you haven't heard it, it's by Miranda Lambert).**_  
_


	16. Chapter 15: Leaving Behind the Title

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 14.**

_**"What is family? They were the people who claimed you. In good, in bad, in parts or in whole, they were the ones who showed up, who stayed in there, regardless. It wasn't just about blood relations or shared chromosomes, but something wider, bigger. We had many families over time. Our family of origin, the family we created, and the groups you moved through while all of this was happening: friends, lovers, sometimes even strangers. None of them perfect, and we couldn't expect them to be. You can't make any one person your world. The trick was to take what each could give you and build your world from it."  
~Sarah Dessen**_

**Chapter 15: Leaving Behind the Title  
**

Six days until Melody's deadline. Dick was on hour 43 of no sleep.

Alfred found him slumped over his work table. "Master Richard, you must sleep at some point."

Dick groaned. "She travels by dream, Alfred. I'm not about to let her in my mind again."

"If you say so. May I ask what this is?" Alfred was now peeking over Dick's shoulder. On the table was a solid black suit slightly reminiscent of his apprentice suit under Slade.

"I'm not Robin anymore, so I need something else to patrol in." He lifted the unfinished edge a bit. "The problem is, I have no idea who I should be now."

"Who do you feel like?"

"A wreck."

"That is a problem. By the way, a young woman has called for you. She's waiting in the Batcave."

"What? Why didn't you say so?"

Starfire was on screen when he bounded down the steps. Her anxious look subsided slightly when she saw him. "Robin!"

"No, Star, not anymore."

"Then you have given up?"

"I can't do that yet. I still have one more person to stop."

Starfire hesitated. "Is all well? Cyborg spoke of a matter of family…"

Dick smiled slightly, of only to show her he still could. "As well as it could be in my family. I just had to take care of my little brother."

He expected her to light up, to ask to meet his younger brother, but instead her face twisted into anger. "Why did you leave us? Cyborg was angry when he said what he did, rightfully so, but you are our leader! If Raven were there, she would have agreed, she would have stopped you and we would not be broken."

Tears had filled the Tamaranian's eyes. This must all remind her of the time she spent in the future, of the broken Titans she found. "But Raven wasn't there."

"That doesn't mean that we, that I-"

"If this means so much to you," he said, still calm on the outside, "then why didn't you stop me?"

No answer. Dick feels his heart drop. "I'm sorry, Star, but I'm not going to come back yet. Not until I sort out this mess, and even then I'm not sure I can."

He hangs up before he saw her cry again. It hurt, but he knew what he had said was true.

* * *

At hour 48, Dick gave up on the suit for the moment. If anything could keep sleep at bay, it was bad news, and currently the news channels were all about bad news. As he flipped through the channels, he watched three second clips of a world in chaos. Death, destruction, the usual end of the world chatter.

There was a feature on Melody. No one seemed to know what to call her. Was she evil? Good? On one hand she supported the general opinion of the public on teenage superheroes. On the other, she was tearing the world apart. Then someone said terrorist, and it stuck. Melody was a terrorist. A sympathetic one, but her good intentions regrettably didn't justify ending the world.

Another channel had a feature on teenage superheroes themselves, organizing the debate that Melody had made their main priority. He began to skip through each channel, tallying the points for both sides with amusement. Mel wasn't exactly giving them a choice. But in his mindless channel surfing, the JLA symbol appeared. No matter what channel he tried, he couldn't shake it. Superman appeared, framed by the JLA Headquarters.

"People of Earth," he began. _Why did he always address the world like he's an alien? Oh wait_… "I am addressing you today in response to the one named Melody." _This should be interesting._ "The teenage superheroes are our responsibility. We ask that you leave handling them to us." _Responsibility? Handling? What are we, puppies?_ "That being said, I would now like to address those superheroes. Come home. Take off your suits." _Yeah, say that to Cyborg._ Though it mildly irritated him that he had done exactly as Clark asked already. "At least until we can stop Melody. It is not worth risking your life further."_ Oh, now they say we're risking our lives._ Clark thanks them and signs off, and the channel returns to an irate reporter who obviously didn't enjoy being interrupted.

"Huh, that's a little lacking, don't you think?"

Dick nearly jumped out of his skin. Mel is leaning over his couch, inches away. "What in the hell are you doing in my room?"

She smiled, clearly amused at his reaction. "Checking on you. You haven't been sleeping lately."

"Get out!"

Jason's head pops in the doorframe, yawning. "Dick? Who are you yelling at?"

Mel's smile widened. "In case you're wondering, no, he can't see me."

"The TV."

"Alfred said to tell you breakfast should be ready in half an hour and that you should really get some sleep." Jason got a good look at him. "And I think he's right. Damn, I thought you were wearing your mask for a minute. You look like a raccoon!"

"Thank you, Jason. I'll be down for breakfast soon."

The younger boy stifles another yawn. "Whatever you say, Dick."

Mel watched him go. "You know, you make a great older brother impression."

"Seriously, Mel, are you real? Please say no."

"Yes, but only you can see me. Well, you and him." She nodded over towards his room. Slade was standing there, looking around with interest.

"I can't say I saw you as the action figure type, Dick."

"Tell me I'm hallucinating." Dick moaned, throwing himself back on the couch.

"Well, you are." Mel said. "Sort of. You're half asleep."

"You know, it really isn't healthy to do this to yourself." Slade said. "Sleep is essential to maintaining clear cognitive functions, and we're doing our best to ensure you need your clear cognitive functions."

"Just what I need, health advice from the two people who specialize in making my life hell."

Bruce walks past his door in a bathrobe with a cup of coffee. "Health advice from whom?"

"Don't mind me, Bruce," he said, too tired to care, "I'm talking to the demons on my shoulder."

"I've been there." He laughed. "Dick, get some sleep."

"Yes, sir."

Slade eyes him. "So this is the man you currently call your father."

"Yes. Don't get any ideas. I'm on a really good no kill streak and I'd hate to break it over you."

Suddenly a hand obscured his vision. Mel's fingertips came down on his eyelids, gently pressing them closed. "Sleep, Dick. You have nothing to fear from us today."

* * *

Back in the dream realm, Slade watches his daughter in law. Was it his imagination, or had the warm concern he had last seen her give for his son resurfaced? It made him wonder. She notices. "Is there something you on your mind?"

"Hmm? Oh not much, really. I'm just admiring your ability to change personalities at will."

The cold gleam reclaims her eyes, and before him she transforms back into the emotionless girl he had been following for the past day. "I am who I need to be."

Slade shrugged and trailed behind her. "As long as you continue to be entertaining, I'll follow whoever you are."

* * *

It was dark, and at first he thought he wasn't dreaming at all. But then he felt it, the air rushing past his face, the distinct weightlessness at the top of a jump's arch. This sensation stretched on and on, until Dick was sure it would never end. And, moments before he woke, a cool, clear voice whispered into his ear.

_So tell me, Dick Grayson, are you flying or are you falling?_

* * *

Dick awoke six hours later, completely refreshed.

"Master Richard! Good to see you awake. Your breakfast will be warm in five minutes."

"You're a lifesaver, Alfred. Where's Bruce and Jason?"

"Master Jason's in the training room, and Master Bruce is on clean up duty."

He wolfed down his breakfast almost as soon as it was put in front of him.

"Goodness, when was the last time you ate?"

"A day and a half ago." He was done in an instant. "I'm heading out!"

Alfred caught his arm. "I'm sorry, but I was told that you were to remain here."

Bruce. "Why?"

"I believe you already know the answer to that question."

"Clark's message." Dick sat back down. "What happened while I was asleep?"

The sharp crunch of someone biting into an apple fills the room, causing Alfred to flinch. "You would think no one taught either of you manners," he mumbles as Jason chews loudly. The younger boy was still in his sweat-stained workout gear.

"It's practically a warzone out there, Dick." He said between bites. "Your Titans responded to Clark's message by telling them that they were taking sides with Mel, which the League didn't take kindly to. I think Clark's exact response was 'This isn't something you can refuse.' Oh, and the media's noticed you're no longer the leader." Somewhere in Jason's rant, Alfred had left for the kitchen to clean up.

"I'm going out."

Jason grins. "I thought you'd say that."

"Are you coming with me?"

"Thought about it. Then I figured that if I kept my nose clean while you snuck out, Bruce might forget my probation while he's raging over you."

Dick returns the grin. "How noble of you."

"Yeah, well, good luck." Jason said over his shoulder as he tossed the apple core into the trash.

* * *

For a world going to hell, the streets Dick traveled down were uneventful. People were a little more jumpy, a little more eager to duck down at the sound of his motorcycle, but other than that he found no crime or sign of Arkham's residents. Just in case, he had put on the unfinished suit. It really was practically done, all the armor plates were in place and it was sewn up, it just lacked any design. It was just a simple, nameless black suit.

He didn't know where he was heading until he was there. For some reason, the apartment building stood out. It looked exactly like the buildings on either side of it, but he felt something familiar about it. The lady at the front desk, after giving him a fearful look of recognition, told him that a studio room had been rented out by a man with an eye patch and his teenage daughter.

Robin stood outside the door, briefly considering breaking the door in, but that felt so wrong without dramatic background music or the cover of night. So instead he knocked. Slade answered the door in a black t-shirt and jeans, adding to the growing uncanny feeling Dick had.

"Dick." He hardly looked surprised. "She said you might show up. Come in."

"Where is she? What has she done to my team?" Dick asked.

"Done?" This did surprise him. "Melody has been sleeping for the past half a day, Dick. What you saw happening in the news was entirely your team's own actions."

He wasn't lying, Mel was huddled under a blanket on a futon in the far corner. Dick could her wavy black hair over the gentle rising and falling of her breathing.

"She must have done something." He said, sounding desperate even to himself. "Used her flute to create some situation or influence the JLA's decision."

Slade laughed. "I don't think you understand. Melody cannot create situations. Her power lies in evoking emotions and thoughts that already exist. In a sense, she's just a really good musician."

"But-"

"Coffee? Tea?"

Damn, this hospitality act was really throwing him off. Slade was the lunatic that tried to force him to be his apprentice, that corrupted Terra, then aided Trigon. Seeing him as a normal person… "She-"

Slade handed him a cup of coffee. "She's not evil."

"I know, but-"

"Do you? You're attempting to treat her like one of your supervillains."

"Because she's acting like one."

"Lower your voice. She's still asleep." He was serious. "And as for your point, exactly, Dick, she's _acting_. That's the beauty of what she's doing right now. The terror she's inspiring is entirely self-sufficient. She's not destroying your world, it's destroying itself. Now drink your coffee and wait. She should wake up some time soon to tell you herself."

Dick was speechless for a moment. All he could bring himself to do was sip the coffee and wonder. There's a small moan and the sound of tossing and turning from the futon. It draws Slade's attention immediately. "Excuse me." Dick watches in astonishment as the older man picks up sobbing girl into a hug, rocking her back and forth like a child.

"NO!"

"Shh, sweetheart, it's just a dream." Slade barely registers the sound of the door closing behind their guest. Mel had calmed down and was now rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Was that Dick?"

"Yes."

"Slade, you can let go of me now." He did, reluctantly. She grabs Dick's unfinished cup of coffee. Then she eyes her new bodyguard. "Not that I mind having a father for once, but if you miss being one so much, why do you keep your children at a distance?"

"They were better off that way."

She shrugs. "Maybe. But then maybe they were screwed anyway." Slade got up for his own cup. "Did you manage to tell him before he ran away?"

"Yes."

"Good. I better tell Harm he's on his way."

* * *

Bruce found him brooding on the roof of Wayne Enterprise's office building. "You're home for a day and already disobeying orders?"

Dick didn't want to talk. He had too much going through his mind, too many emotions running unchecked. "I didn't come back to take orders."

"Where have you been?"

"Out." Melody, the sympathetic terrorist. The emotionally-distraught widow. He knew where she was, he could see it from his position. He could have ended it all right then, as she slept. Hell, he could end it all right now, he had been watching all day, and they had yet to leave.

"Not as Robin, I hope."

"I told you, I'm done with that title. Why are you worried about me? Jason's the one you need to check on." And now he was thinking about Jason. He hoped the kid was okay, but he didn't see how anyone could handle killing someone.

"I tried. He won't talk to me."

"Try harder. You're his father, for Christ's sake!" Jason needed someone to open to, and not just an older brother. He wanted his father's reconciliation and guidance, and somehow, Dick couldn't see Bruce doing more than brushing off the problem. Even Slade had put more effort into his son, and now the man had adopted his daughter in law. It didn't help that Dick had seen Slade rock her back awake from a nightmare. It was too much like the few memories of his own biological parents. That was unsettling. More so than he had expected.

"I've never had much luck talking my teenage sons down."

Great, now, on top of conflicting memories and ideals, he wanted to laugh and punch his adopted father at the same time. "So you just gave up on him?"

He could do it, he could call a few Titans with powers that appropriately countered Mel's spell casting ability and Slade's physical prowess. They would be disarmed in a minute, and this mess Mel conjured up would be done.

Gone.

Right?

"No, never. You know I wouldn't."

"Then why are you here?" No, it wouldn't be over. She would be in custody, but that damn question she asked him would be left unanswered, twisting around in his mind. His team was broken, and even if they took him back, he would never be able to send them on a mission again, any hint of the risk of death would too much. He never wanted to speak at another funeral again. Then there was the JLA to deal with. They would most likely be dealing with a teenage superhero ban. They would have to fight in order to be able to fight, and Dick wasn't sure the Titans would be able to handle that.

"I can't have you running around when the others have been trying to reel in their sidekicks." Case in point. Dick turned his attention back onto Bruce for a minute.

"I'm not Robin right now, so it shouldn't be a problem if I'm searching the city. Why are you really here?" He asking himself more than Bruce. What were his other options?

Bruce shifted uncomfortably. "Because I have both of you to worry about now."

Dick made up his mind. "No, you don't."

**A/n: Oh, my reviewers, you have no idea how much I love you.**


	17. Chapter 16: Falling

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 15.**

_**"You see, you closed your eyes. That was the difference. Sometimes you cannot believe what you see, you have to believe what you feel. And if you are ever going to have other people trust you, you must feel that you can trust them, too-even when you're in the dark. Even when you're falling."  
~Mitch Albom**_

**Chapter 16: Falling**

He was an idiot.

This fact became perfectly clear to him as he stood, surrounded by the entire Justice League of America, on the roof of Wayne Enterprise's skyscraper. Superman floated behind him, Wonder Woman stood before him. He could see them all spread across his line of vision, streaming out into a defensive position.

"I told you, Bruce, talking to him wasn't going to work."

"Well, it's definitely not going to work now, Clark."

There was a pausing, and he could see that they wanted him to do something. "Oh, what? Me? Don't worry about me. I have no idea what's going on, but I'm assuming you're going to arrest me for something, right?"

"Don't pretend you don't know why we're here." Batgirl said. She was angry, but he could tell it was because she was hurt. Betrayed, maybe?

"I'm not pretending." Dick said. He took a step forward, and the entire League braced themselves. It made him want to laugh, to think that they thought he, a single acrobat, would be a threat to them. He could see Bruce glancing around, probably thinking the same thing. He took another step.

"Robin, please." Superman said, his voice in between pleading and threatening. Dick calculated the time it would take Superman to immobilize him. Not long.

"I'm not Robin." Another step.

"It's true, he gave me that title yesterday." Jason said. The boy was hanging back, but clearly dressed as Robin. So he was forgiven now?

He was now in front of his mentor. The entire crowd of superheroes formed a tight circle around him. He could barely breath as he thought about everything these people were capable of and how all of that ability was now directed at him, the former circus-performer. "We don't wish to hurt you, Dick."

He raised his arms, fists aimed at Bruce's chest. Everyone tensed around him.

"Then arrest me. That's what you came to do, right?"

* * *

The interrogation room was a small, dark cell with a spotlight over a metal table. They were playing mind games with him, rotating through a cast of familiar faces. He was never alone for more than a minute, yet the way his interrogators looked at him, like he was a stranger, like he was no longer the boy they indirectly helped raise, like he hadn't spent half of his life among their ranks, that made him feel more alone than anyone. His mental barriers flew up, layer by layer, protecting him from the pain of alienation. But he was Dick Grayson, son of Batman, former leader of the Titans, former apprentice of Slade, mind games were something he could play. He fixed his blue eyes on the point directly between his interrogator's eyes, mimicking Mel's impassive stare, barely registering when one face left and was replaced with another.

"We aren't going to hurt you, Dick." Superman said.

"I know, Clark."

"We just want to know about Mel." Wonder Woman said. Apparently she had left New York before it was retaken.

"You know about as much as I do."

"How long have you been working for her?" Green Arrow asked.

"Never."

"But you've been in contact with her?" The Martian Manhunter asked.

"Why don't you just read my mind and find out?"

"I would," Zatanna said, "but I can't. You have been placed under a protective spell."

Dick raised an eyebrow. "Well, that's news to me."

"What has she done to you?" Batgirl asked. Or maybe that was actually Barbara, but Dick would not allow himself to get emotional.

"She made me the center of her plan."

"What plan?" The Atom asked.

"I don't know."

The Flash's hands slam down on the table. "Stop pretending!"

"I'm not."

"Tell me, how does Melody operate?" Green Lantern asked.

"She's a manipulator."

"Is she manipulating you?" Superman asked.

"She's manipulating us all."

"Us?" Wonder Woman repeated.

"You, me, the JLA, the media, probably the entire planet. Us."

"How long have you been under her spell?" Cyborg asked.

"As long as you have."

Cyborg stared at him for a moment, not quite registering what he said. Then he sighs and stands to leave. Dick continues to stare ahead. "We did this to help you, Dick."

"I'm not the one who needs help." _Jason, Joseph, Raven, hell, the entire world. Why was everyone so fixated on him? They had bigger worries._

The door closes, then opens again a few minutes later. Dick continues to stare directly ahead, where his interrogator's head would soon appear. A black bat on a gray background obscures his vision, sending a spike in his heart rate. Dick looks up, and, for once, he's the first to speak. "I almost thought you were avoiding me."

Bruce says nothing. He sits, cowl off, across from his son. Blue eyes lock onto blue eyes, and they stare, without wavering. "I didn't want them to arrest you."

"How long was I under suspicion?"

"From the way your teammate put it, they were worried for weeks before she first appeared, but they didn't call us until you left for Gotham."

"How many days until her deadline?"

"Three."

"Why are you guys wasting your time with me?"

"You told Barbara that you were the center of her plan. Melody confirmed that on national television the night we arrested you."

"Really?"

"Yes." He was waiting.

"I don't know what she's talking about."

"You told me on the roof that I would no longer have to worry about you."

"You don't. I grew up, Bruce, I'm an adult now. I can make my own decisions."

"Decisions? Such as?"

He hadn't revealed this to anyone yet, and he didn't think it would help his case, but something about this moment compelled him to trust Bruce with it. "I trust her."

And the room exploded around them.

* * *

Dick faded in and out of consciousness.

"You killed him." Slade insisted.

"I did not." Mel retorted. "That was a possum reflex and you know it."

"Well excuse me for assuming the worst the second time his heart stopped beating."

"Now look what you did. His heart stopped again."

"I told you, you killed him."

"Shut up."

* * *

_He was standing in some endless, glittering expanse. Iridescent bubbles floated around him, following some unseen, complex pattern._

"_Hello?" His voice didn't echo, exactly, but it resonated and expanded, somehow sounding big and little at the same time. There was no answer, so he started to wander. Nearby, a bubble with a faint blue hue caught his attention. Curiosity got the better of him, and he approached the surface, noting that inside there was movement. It expanded to cover his entire field of vision at his touch, the center becoming translucent. It was a door to another world._

_Mel sat alone on a couch in front of a TV. She was watching something he couldn't see, but whatever it was it was causing her to wince and bite her lower lip every few seconds. He moves to get a better look, and finds himself watching Jason taking aim with a gun and firing._

"_What is this?"_

_She whirls around. "Dick? How'd you get here? I didn't call you."_

"_I don't know. I just found myself here. What are you doing?"_

_She glanced back at the TV. "I'm watching all the deaths I'm now responsible for."_

_He leans on the back, remembering with irony that this is exactly what she was doing to him a few days ago. "You're responsible for them? I thought you couldn't create situations."_

"_No, but I can bring out the worst in people, I can cause them to feel things they have buried, or weaken their determination. I can push them over the edge into the abyss."_

_The screen shows the Joker laughing and tossing aside the body of a young woman, it shows Jason's fear and anguish as he runs away, leaving Batman to fend off the remaining Arkham convicts alone._

"_Her name was Fiona." Mel said as the screen changes, covering the scene of destruction in another country. Emergency food vans were in an ambush by desperate bandits. "You would never have known her. Jason would never have met her. But in another world, one where I never existed, her great grandchild would have kissed your great nephew. Now that will never happen."_

"_Why are you doing this?"_

_She looks up at him with tired dark blue eyes. "So they aren't forgotten, ever."_

* * *

He came to in a bare, curving room. It was dark except for a faint blue light produced by several crystal columns scattered about the room.

"Good of you to come back to the world of the living, Dick. You scared the hell out of Melody a few times." Slade said. He was standing protectively over a huddled mass that must have been Mel, like some sort of guard dog.

"He did not." The mass said, it unfolded into Mel. "I knew he was fine."

"Sure you did." Slade glanced at his wrist. "I was about to wake you anyway. We should get going."

Mel got up, rubbing her temple. "We have a public to address. Dick, are you in?"

"What?"

"Will you stand behind me?"

Dick thought about it for a moment. "For now."

* * *

They were in Jump City. She had called a press conference in the city square. At her call, the entire city appeared, including scores of reporters and camera crews. Her appearance from nowhere on the podium with Slade on her Left and Dick on her right caused quite a stir. He could feel the cameras training on him, the breathless whispers on his change of heart. He observed the crowd, and noticed a familiar banner in the crowd. If the Gotham Gazette had time to send a reporter, then Bruce…

But before he could voice his concern, Mel had begun. "You have had five days. I've taken five cities. I will take two more if you aren't on time."

"Enough threats, Melody." Superman's voice boomed across the crowd. "I'm here to take you in."

Mel summoned her flute.

"That won't work this time, Piper." Batman said. He pointed to his ear, which had a heavy-duty silver earpiece to it over his cowl. "I learn quickly."

"Besides, we have you in our sights. We can shoot the flute from your hand in seconds." Green Arrow's voice came from a radio connect Batman had attached to his hip. Dick raised an eyebrow. Bruce must have engineered the ear pieces to allow them to hear each other but block out everything else, which was impressive. He would have to ask Bruce about that later… Dick looked around, taking in the swarm of heroes, both teenage and adult, all of whom he could name. This felt too familiar. Then it hit him, the League had expected Mel to come to his rescue that night.

Somehow, this was less impressive after he had seen the dress rehearsal.

"Give it up, Mel," Cyborg said, his arm cannon locked and loaded. "You can't win this."

Superman floated inches away from the girl. "I have one last question for you. Why are you trying to destroy their future?"

Slade burst out laughing. Mel looked at him, a smirk forming on what was her emotionless face, the mischievous glint back in her eyes. "I don't know why you're laughing, Slade, you owe me fifty."

Beastboy transformed back. "Is he laughing at us?" He asked a nearby hero, who turned out to be Aquaman. The older man shrugged. In fact, the entire crowd appeared to be perplexed.

Slade's laughter subsided. "I just find it hard to believe that they actually brought everyone with them."

And that was the heroes' cue that their plan had veered entirely off course, but before any of them could get beyond their looks of horrified realization, Mel snapped. Dick recognized the spell, and couldn't help but feel sorry for the heroes. Helplessness, he remembered, had been far worse than any pain he had ever felt. Mel strolled down the steps, only to stop in front of Superman. She gave the head of the Justice League a cool look.

"To answer your question, Kryptonian, I'm not trying to take their dreams, I'm trying to make them realize what their dreams are. You focus on the glory, on the selflessness, but that doesn't cut it. You have to come back to reality at some point, and for many of these teens," she waved at the immobilized Titans mixed with the League, "reality won't be kind. It certainly wasn't to Joe."

She turned away from him and stalked towards the throng of journalists. "Now I believe I told you that you have a certain deadline to take care of. I'm actually a little disappointed that you haven't already answered my demands, I mean, it's simple: take the children out of crime fighting." She pointed at a camera crew. "You're now broadcasting live, I presume?" The man nodded. "Good. I'm about to give you all a little motivation."

Her flute, which had never left her hand, raised, and emitted a shrill scream. Dick dropped to his knees, the music had pierced into his very being. Pain, like the sharp, pointed legs of some demonic centipede, tore across his soul. He had been wrong, helplessness had nothing on this. He couldn't escape it, couldn't suppress it with his normal mental blocks, the pain was part of his mind. He felt his sanity shredding, his memories, his emotions, all cracking, revealing the beginning of some empty void. Death? He could only hope.

And it music stopped, leaving Dick on the ground, clutching his chest like he was trying to keep himself together. He looked around, noting that everyone was in this state. Mel had dropped to one knee to address the tilted camera. "That pain you just felt? That's the last thing Joseph Wilson felt before he sacrificed his life. No teenager should be asked to feel that. Stop waiting for your silly politics to work, stop acting like you can do nothing. If you agree, now's the time to act. You have two days, use them wisely."

* * *

They watched from the same skyscraper Melody had first met him. The sunrise had painted the sky with blood and, more ominously, framed the black smoke of the Titan's Tower. The citizens had spoken.

Dick watched with mixed emotions. That had been the work of his life, the symbol that had become his everything. He had dreamed of it expanding, growing to encompass the world with the same light and warmth it had brought him. It almost had.

In those months spent fighting the Brotherhood of Evil, he had watched with growing pride as his team grew. He had felt it, his Titans rising. Flying. Then, near the end, when he realized that his communicators had become tracking devices, he dropped. Falling. His run with the Titans always seemed to follow that pattern: the flying and falling, searching for solid ground but never finding it. He missed the simpler cycle, the one he had when Slade stood against him, when he stood on a clear side, backed by a team he trusted and loved. But Mel and Jericho had shown him that when it comes to death, to pain and to sacrifice, there are no sides.

Right now he was not a hero or a villain. He was back to simply Dick, without the undertone of Robin. Dick Grayson, trying and failing to answer a simple question.

Falling.

And as the smoke drifts into the molten sky, Dick began to wonder if he would ever fly again.


	18. Chapter 17: Asleep

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 16.**

_**"When we least expect it, life sets us a challenge to test our courage and willingness to change; at such a moment, there is no point in pretending that nothing has happened or in saying that we are not yet ready. The challenge will not wait. Life does not look back. A week is more than enough time for us to decide whether or not to accept our destiny."  
~ Paulo Coelho**_

**Chapter 17: Asleep**

Eventually the sky retracted into a normal blue and the Tower's internal structure collapsed, leaving his former life in nothing but smoke and ruin.

"They gave you their answer." Dick said. "Are you going to restore the world again?"

"Oh no," Mel said. "They gave me an answer because I held a gun to their head and made it perfectly clear that no one could stop the bullet. That's not a true answer. That's a response, and they can easily justify breaking it in the future, and I want a permanent solution. Besides, there were two parts: they ban teen heroes and you answer my question."

"Do I have to?"

"Yes."

"No, I don't think being a hero is worth teenagers dying."

She pushed his shoulder so that their eyes met, light blue to dark blue. "Do you truly mean that?"

_No._

He knew she saw his unspoken answer. Her mouth twitched slightly, but she managed to keep her serious demeanor. Sometimes it scared him, how much her dark blue eyes could see. "Come, you have a job to do."

"I- What?" He stared for a moment, unable to decipher her meaning. He had left his family, both of them, and stood quietly by as she publically disabled every hero the earth has. He had given up, hadn't he?

She sees his confusion, and reacts with a look of disappointment. "I'm assuming that just because you've decided to trust me does not mean that you now want me to end the world."

"Well, no, but-"

"So what are you going to do, Dick?"

He hated himself for the helpless look he must be wearing, but he couldn't help wear it. He had just given up everything, he had no plan to go on, no angle of attack formed. He had no idea where to start. Seconds ticked by as he tried to come up with some answer.

To his immense surprise, Slade interrupted the painful silence. "When you were my apprentice, you were willing to die for your team. Has this changed?"

That he could answer. "No."

"You had so much faith in them. Has that changed?"

"No." Dick was beginning to see where this was going.

Mel started this time. "You had a dream for them, one you stumbled on accidentally, but allowed to become your dream. Are you going to let me take it away?

"No." Their words were building in him, they focused his scattered mind, and, just like that, it dawned on him what he had to do. Everything fell into place. Both Slade and Mel saw this.

Slade nodded. "Then you have a job to do, and not much time to do it."

Dick felt the determination rise in him. He hadn't lost yet. He still had a chance, he still had time. He took a running start to the ledge, then leaped off.

Mel laughed softly as they watched the black bird rediscover his wings. "So I take it you both have figured me out?"

Slade shrugged. "I wouldn't have let you come this far if I thought you were any real threat to the entire world. I may not be a hero, in fact, I may have lost everyone I love already, but I sure as hell would like to keep living."

"Good to hear." Her eyes were following the small black figure all the way to the point where he disappeared over the side of one building. She swiveled around and began walking to their apartment. "And you have not lost everyone you love. Yet. If it keeps up at this pace, you will."

"Thanks." He said dryly, falling in step with her easily. "So what are we going to do while we wait for the brat?"

"Well, we've already played twenty questions-"

"More like a hundred and fifty questions." Slade snorted.

"I was thinking that you should teach me how to throw knives."

"You don't know how? I thought you said you were in an Academy that had that class."

"I wasn't exactly a model student. They hesitated to give me sharp things." She waved it off like it didn't matter. "Besides, they taught everything strictly for self-defense, not to hurt or kill anybody. I want the other kind."

This caused the old man to grin. "I can empathize with their security." Her look made him laugh. "Don't worry that doesn't mean I'll emulate it. I'll tell you what, I'll teach you, but only if you teach me that odd fighting style you used on me earlier."

"The chi-blocking style? Why? You're dangerous enough as is."

"As are you."

"Touché."

* * *

The plan he had desperately grasped at before suddenly appeared, as if he were rediscovering it as he flew over the Jump City streets. First, he had a team to rebuild. After Melody's performance on international television, the teenage superheroes had split, knowing that all chances of them coming out on top, intact, were lost. Dick watched them go, trying not to react to their dirty glares, or worse, Starfire's sad eyes. But they had nowhere left to go, nowhere except…

He didn't know if any of his team remembered the final emergency meeting point, the one they were told only to go to when all else failed. It would take him hours to get there, but he could make it…

He went, every mile flying by under his motorcycle another emotion attempt to take over, but nothing trumped the anxiety. He had publicly stood with enemy. Would they listen to him now? But he made it, and the base opened for him. He stepped in, steeling himself for the unknown.

They were there, silent, brooding teens in bright outfits, sitting around, unsure of what to do with themselves. Unfocused. Leaderless. The sound of the door opening drew their attention, and, within minutes, Dick was well aware that everyone was giving him their undivided attention. They appeared to be in shock, not the awe kind of shock, the disbelief, as if he were the last one they would expect to arrive. He supposed that he was.

"What do you want?" Speedy asked. He tried to sound angry, but all he could manage was tired. Green Arrow couldn't have gone easy on him.

That was actually a good place to start. "I need advice."

"Advice." Bumblebee sneered. "Well, here's some advice, take your traitor ass back to your new owner. We're through with you." The Herald placed a hand over hers to stop her, but much of the crowd muttered their ascent.

He ignored her. Really, what did he have to fear anymore? "I need help." The shock was wearing off, an angry buzz rising. "She wants me to answer a question for all of you, and I can't do that without actually asking you first."

"Why should we believe you?" Aqualad asked indignantly.

"You don't have to. I just can't bring myself to answer a question that so clearly is directed at us all on my own. I need you. All of you. I can't do this without you."

For a long moment, he feared they would not help him, that they would not believe him and send him packing. But his first team, his original four, made eye contact. For a brief moment, he sent a pleading look to them. _Don't make me do this on my own. I already know I can't. _

"What is the question?" Starfire asked. Dick ignored the pain her voice tore into his heart, though it gave him hope, also. If she were willing to give him another chance, even a small one, after all of this…

"She asked me if continuing to let teenage superheroes fight was worth them dying."

The angry buzz grew into a roar. Why should they have to justify themselves? There was crime, they fought it. That was it, end of discussion. No explanations needed.

"You fit in just fine." Though she said it quietly, it cut through the crowd nonetheless. Raven raised her head from her cowl, meeting her former leader's eyes. "Those are Cyborg's words, back before we were a team. That's why I stayed at the beginning, Dick. You guys lived with me, accepted me, and, after being raised as a time-bomb, that was more than I could ever have asked for. My life means nothing without that."

"It is almost the same for me as well." Starfire said, her jewel green eyes on Dick as well. "I came here as a prisoner, and, were it not for you, I would not have been able to reclaim my freedom. My entire planet would not have done as you did, and that made me want to remain by your side. And yes, that includes in death also."

"After my accident, I had nothing. I felt nothing anymore," Cyborg said. He had never said anything about his bitter past before. "And then you guys literally crashed into my life, and I felt more than anger and pain, I felt useful. I had a purpose again, I had friends again. That's why I would give my life, it is my life."

Beastboy shrugged. "It's in my blood. I mean, I suppose I could act or something, but that's not the same. That doesn't feel right. If you taught me anything while we fought together, it was that I'm not me unless I'm where I belong. And I felt like me with you guys. It was where I belonged, and if that sent me to my death, well, that sucks, but so be it."

They made room for him to sit down, absorbing him back easily, like a stray drop to a puddle. One by one, his team told them, told _him_, their stories, their reasons for joining, for accepting death. And hours later, when no one had anything else to share, Dick stretched.

"Thank you, all of you." He said, trying very hard not to cry. How would that look? To see their fallen leader cry? "I know now that my answer should be yes, without doubt."

"Where are you going?" Cyborg asked, suspicion creeping into his voice.

"I have to go back and actually answer her now." He checked his watch. "We only have a few hours to do so."

They looked at him quizzically. "I thought she called it off." Bumblebee said. "I mean, the world made it pretty clear that we're banned."

"She wants more. She wants resolve."

"Rob-" Cyborg said.

"Dick."

"Whatever. She needs to be stopped. You see that now, don't you?"

He bit his lower lip. "Yes, but-"

"We've gotten out of tighter situations, dude." Beastboy said, grinning.

"Yeah, the old people tripped us up last time." Kid Flash joked. "If it were just us, I'm sure we could have figured something out."

"You said it yourself, Dick," Cyborg said, "you need us. So what do you say?"

Dick couldn't help it this time, not with a roomful of earnest faces staring back at him. A tear rolled down his cheek. "I suppose I could team up this one time…"

* * *

Dick could feel his confidence building with each step he took towards the girl. He couldn't say if this actually answered her question, if it was adequate enough to ease her pain over losing Jericho…

They entered the cave Mel had said to meet her in. The cave Joseph was buried in. Mel waited at the grave, Slade standing behind her right. She was still in the black-net veil, still cold and determined.

"We have your answer." He called out. Was it enough? Mel seemed put off by the teens behind him, she obviously wasn't expecting them to come back with him.

But a cruel grin had spread across her face. She interrupted him in a booming voice. "Good, Dick, excellent work. Who would have thought they would still have trusted you after all." She cackled and summoned her flute.

_No. _He thought. _No, this can't be happening! Her plan won't work, my friends know me, and they can think for themselves!_ He glanced back at them, desperate._ They must realize-_

Cyborg, who was directly behind him, had that stunned look, like he had just been slapped.

_that this is- _

Beastboy's look said _I knew it, it was a trap! _

_just a-_

Starfire's eyes filled with hurt, betrayal of the deepest kind. She would never trust him again.

_ploy. _The last word dropped. They bought it. Melody's lullaby must have taken affect, because the world went black and white around him. Dick's shoulders shook with rage. He whirled around with a kick. "WHY?"

His leg was stopped by Slade, who had a very dangerous look on his face. "This will work out so much better for you if you could control your temper."

Mel wasn't fazed, though her evil impression had faded to one of grim resolution. "Dick, I asked you, no one else. I expect an answer from you and you alone."

"I can't answer alone!" He shouted. "This isn't just my world! I share it with them!"

"So you don't have an answer at all?"

"Not one you'd accept." The hope his team had given him had drained away with the color in their faces, in their eyes, frozen in a blink that Dick hoped they would never complete. He never wanted to see the terrible betrayal meant solely for him ever. He would rather go to sleep and never wake up.

_No you wouldn't._ It was a small voice inside him, but it was one he recognized. He heard it only in those moments when he had nothing left, when the world he built lay in ruins around him and the troubles that came with day to day life of managing his dreams were swept away. It was the voice he heard when his parents were killed, when Bruce told him to give up the costume. It kept him going in those dark days as Slade's apprentice, it was what woke him up when faced with the desolation of Trigon's take-over. It was what told him to stand strong as The Brain informed him of the watertight plan to end the Titans.

"Wait!"

Mel sighed. "I'm sorry, Dick, but your time is up."

Something lifted off of him, like a faint whisper it passed over him, leaving him feel exposed all at once. Then, for the first time, he heard her lullaby. It resonated through him, wrapping around him like warm arms on a summer night, dragging him down into the inky black of unconsciousness. He sank down into the blissful ignorance of eternal sleep, half-listening to a gentle voice from long ago singing, rocking him back and forth.

_Lullaby, and goodnight, my dear son, my sweetie,_

_Lullaby, and goodnight, dear heart of mine, my darling,_

_Lullaby, go to sleep, my dear little robin,_

_When you wake, we'll take flight again,_

_But for now, lullaby and goodnight._

* * *

**A/n: So I'm one of those author's that obsessively checks their story views, and the day before yesterday surprised me. My max daily view _doubled_. I could barely believe my eyes! Then yesterday happened, and I got 2. I guess it evens out? Anyway, thank you, viewers (and especially my reviewers), for reading my story. It's wrapping up here in the next few chapters. I've already written out the bulk of the end, I just have some editing to do... Oh well, see you guys in a few days.  
**

**Also, I know, I know, I attempted to write lyrics again, but it's a lullaby. Those things you can pretty much say anything in a sing-song voice and it'll work :P  
**


	19. Chapter 18: Waking Dream

**A/n: Read chapter 17 listening to "Asleep" by The Smiths and 18 listening to "MLK" by U2. They pretty much inspired these chapters. Also, thanks for my first thousand views, guys ^_^  
**

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 17.**

"_**Why is it, my shadow-striding friend, that we don't fear dreams? We lose consciousness, lose control, things happen with no apparent logic and abiding by no apparent rules... We don't fear dreams, but we do fear madness, and death terrifies us."  
~Brent Weeks**_

**Chapter 18: Waking Dream**

The nothing began to fade, and the entity that was Dick Grayson awoke slowly, as if struggling free from viscous darkness. When he awoke completely, she was standing in front of him, surrounded by a dazzling expanse of empty space.

"Walk with me," she said. He simply looked around, mesmerized and more than a little dazed.

"Where are we?" He asked. This place was massive, almost too massive to comprehend. Each inch of space they passed shimmered, giving off the impression that they were walking through some magical miasma, but the shimmer seemed delicate, like it longed to be filled. Dick got the impression that this place was barren. _How'd I get here?_

"This is your world's dream realm." _Dream._ The word struck an odd chord in his mind. It stirred up memories…

"My dream realm?" He said slowly, looking around. Then his memories came rushing back. "You- you took them?"

"Yes." She seemed sad about this. "Didn't think I would have to, but you're taking longer than expected." She shrugged. "I couldn't back down."

"Why?"

"You'd all know it was a ruse."

"No, I mean why did you wake me up?" This caught her off guard. In fact, she had a hand against his forehead for a moment. "What are you doing?"

"Checking you for a fever." She muttered. "I know you're healthier than the rest of the humans, but you have had very little food or water or sleep, and that lowers your immune system."

He brushed off her hand. "I don't have a cold. I just asked a question."

"Yeah, but I expected a little more hellfire and brimstone. Like your initial reaction."

"I'm thinking now. I wasn't then."

"And the best you could come up with is why?"

"Well, normally this situation only happens when the villain wants to gloat…"

She cocked an eyebrow. "You see me as a villain again?"

"No, which is why I asked 'why.'" Dick walked out and gestured around him. "Did Jericho really want this?"

Pain flashed over her face. For a minute, the blurry outline of the blonde boy could be seen behind her with a hand on her shoulder, green eyes staring straight ahead. But the image faded. "No. He wanted the opposite."

"Then why?" He asked. "There had to be a better way."

She smiled sadly. "I'm not a villain, Dick. I'm not going to go into a detailed rant about my motives and my execution just yet. You haven't reached that point yet."

"You need to tell me something!"

She shrugged again. "Walk with me." She repeated. So he did.

Images appeared in the shimmering expanse as he did, floating, translucent orbs, hundreds of them of all sizes. Sometimes they appeared, other times one would disappear, making them behave much like bubbles. Beyond the iridescent sheen of the surface he could make out a dancing core.

"These are the dreams of your world. Or at least, they were," she said. Why did she sound so heartbroken? He was watching her carefully now, and Mel was definitely not the same girl he had met barely two weeks ago. Then again, Jericho had been alive two weeks ago…

She stopped in front of one of the larger bubbles. It wasn't the largest, but Dick could see that the area around it was alive with motion. Those near it grew and shrank, sometimes glowing with new lights and other times fading a little into the background. New dreams popped in and out of existence, changed shape, all in the presence of this shining, gold-hued bubble.

"You wanted to know why you." She said, her eyes never leaving him. "This is why. This is your dream, Dick. It's simple, yet powerful. I haven't really gone into to it, but something you must understand is that the dreams of this world have power, that if your dream was strong enough, it could change your reality. I know this because of you. You've done just that, you've created a dream so powerful that it altered your reality, it brought together your Titans and gave this world another source of hope against its darker dreams. But not only that, it's inspired so many others to lift their heads, to join you or to dream themselves a new life. Your dream has given rise to and crushed so many others. You're a catalyst, Dick, you were born to change the world."

What she was saying just felt fundamentally wrong to him. He, Dick Grayson, the circus performer? He wasn't born with _anything_, except maybe a natural talent for acrobatics. But that was expected from the child of two star performers, wasn't it? And even then, it took a strict training regime and years of work to build the strength and ability he possessed now. No, it couldn't be. He had worked for this, he wasn't born with it. "I don't have that kind of power."

"Really? Think, Robin, your team has become a group of leaders, each capable of forming their own factions, each capable of going solo, but who do they follow? You."

"No, I've made mistakes."

"You were cast out, and yet who was everyone watching? You."

Now she was just pissing him off. "Because of you."

She smiled a small, sad smile he had never seen before. "No, Dick, I don't create. I simply manipulate. The attention around you, to you, that was already there. I just emphasized it."

"You're wrong."

"I'm not wrong, but we don't have time to argue, your world is ending. I've told you my reasons, I've told you my goal. All I want is for you to answer my question: Are the Titans worth asking death from each member?"

"And we've already been over this, I don't have an answer! And even if I did, I can't answer for everyone else!"

"Not only can you, you have to. Otherwise, I take this," she gestures at the huge expanse of dreams, "and leave only your desolate reality. You can live without dreams, but it's a fairly miserable experience."

"What do you want me to do?" He cried, frustrated. Why was she so determined to put everything on his shoulders? She didn't respond other than to reach out and touch the surface of Dick's dream. The bubble shifted, morphing into something that was more of an opening to a vast cave. The gold sheen of the walls enveloped him, blocking out everything else until he was standing on a single, glittering square in an endless, shimmering gold ocean.

Déjà vu.

Her voice, disembodied, cool and clear, echoed around him. "What can you do?"

He took a deep breath, and, swallowing all his doubt, he stepped into his dream.

* * *

Mel turned away as soon as she was sure he had been absorbed by his dream. Taking a deep breath, she opened her eyes to watch the flow of this world.

Before her, millions of glittering wisps wove together into a single stream. Here and there threads connected, intertwined, redirected one another. They changed shapes and shades, and, because of the strange laws that governed this world, they sometimes disappeared and reappeared, or frayed and came back together. In some places there were snags and knots signifying strange event. Even now, as she observed them, they moved forward and backward to create a new present.

Her father and his people called this the continuity of the world, and she had watched enough of these to be able to predict their twists and turns fairly accurately.

She frowned. Dick was on the right track, he was changing the continuity so that it could become stable once more, but something was off. She had to have overlooked some factor, so she searched. No, everything was as she had seen it last, so what was causing the continuity to head towards such an enormous snarl?

The she caught it. One fact she had thought had come to pass hadn't. For a brief second her heart swelled with joy, but then the implications hit her hard.

_Oh no._

* * *

_Walking in, his first impression was that his dream looked like someone had scattered hundreds of bits of his memories into one warehouse and then shook the building violently. The idea made him grimace and grin at the same time, because that was more or less exactly what Melody had done._

_He stopped at the first memory. He sees his team as they first met: helping Starfire escape the Gordanians. After that they gradually became a team. Why? What made him stay? Why did he forego his original plan to go solo? At least then he would feel less responsible for another's choice to become a hero… The memory of his team, all of them, telling him why they would die for the Titans, was still fresh in his mind. It still left an ache in his chest._

_The next memory was a little older: becoming Robin, after running the Gauntlet and not just passing but surpassing Bruce's expectations, the hint of pride under the solemn look he wore as Dick took the oath._

…to fight crime and corruption and never swerve from the path of justice.

_He had still been a child back then. He believed in the simplicity of that oath, and the bond Bruce offered. But that bond broke, and it only took a single gunshot to the shoulder. The simplicity also faded, but that took time and experience._

_He watched briefly as he faced Red X, trying to remember if that was the moment he started to doubt his conventional thoughts on black and white crime fighting when another memory caught him._

One man can make a difference.

_Bruce's words, ones he had repeated many times over the years while explaining to Robin the importance of their work. They became Robin's new simplicity. If he couldn't divide the world into black and white any longer, he could at least make it so that innocent people could rest in peace. That is why he became Robin in the first place, wasn't it? Because he was tired of being one of the innocent people who always seemed at risk of dying?_

_Another memory was vying for his attention, and he was surprised to see that it had Superman in it. Clark was telling him a story._

There was a man on my homeworld many centuries before my birth who was cast out of his family as you were. He used his talents and his skills to fight for those who couldn't fight for themselves. He became a legend. No one knew his real name. He was called only Nightwing.

_Nightwing. Another memory: Starfire was staring at him with total respect, total awe, ranting about how his future had looked. She mentioned that he went by a new name, Nightwing. His suit had a name now._

_That was his reason why, he realized. That was why he didn't leave or give up crime fighting. He could protect himself, and better, he could protect others. In this world, where people like Madame Rouge and Dr. Light exist, where organizations like the Brotherhood of Evil and H.I.V.E. can thrive, those 'others' needed all the help they could get. When he was under Bruce, he had never understood the man's aversion to making connections. Well, he did, a little. Connections can only hurt the two on either end, but at the same time they were necessary. They were what made humanity possible._

_Families, the idea that scared Bruce is what Dick craved. And he had found one in the team of misfits and sidekicks. That's why he joined the Titans. He led them because he knew he could see potential, and, better yet, help others see it as well._

_Melody's question was focused on watching that family die, on their pain and suffering, pretty much all the reasons Bruce avoided the subject. But Dick understood now. They were a family, but they were also heroes. The bond between began as a mutual urge to help others. It was dangerous, but they faced it the way a firefighter ran into a burning building or a police officer stepped into the line of fire. This was their job. If the police were enough, if the system could effectively protect those that it needed to protect, they would not be necessary._

_But it didn't._

_And they were._

_Dick found out a long time ago that he was not one of those who were willing to duck their head down whenever the corrupt took what they wanted and hurt those in the way. He was no Superman or Flash, he didn't have superpowers, but luckily Bruce showed him that he didn't have to be._

_He realized his memories had shifted. They were no longer jumbled around, instead they had all moved in place around him, making him the center of a circle of panels containing each significant memory. His dream had organized itself, and directly in front of him was an image that cemented his resolve._

_When he was young, before he was Nightwing, before he was Robin, before he was Bruce Wayne's son, there was a time when Dick Grayson lived to fly. He could remember the sheer terror at the thought of his first time swinging, how far away the ground looked when he stepped onto the platform. But even now, he could also remember his mother's gentle hand on his back, guiding him. The voice, just as warm as it had been when it sung him to sleep, followed._

"_Be strong, Dick, don't worry about the ground. This is all about falling. If you fall right, we'll be there to catch you before you fall wrong. And if you can fall perfectly, you might just be able to fly."_

_And fly he would._

* * *

"Melody? Back so soon?" Slade asked when the teen stirred.

She sat up end locked gazes with the man. _Please no, please no, please no…_

"Is everything alright?" He looked concerned. His hand clasped around the hilt of his blade. "Did Dick do anything-?"

"No, Dick didn't do anything." She was relieved. Sort of. Standing, she treaded softly across the room to the huge group of teens. "I overlooked something and I needed to adjust my plan."

The man relaxed his grip on katana. "Nothing too drastic, I hope?"

"No, nothing that I can't handle."

"Good." He glanced at Dick. "Are you sure this is going to work? He is just one person."

"I'm surprised to hear that from _you_. You were one of the first to recognize his potential." She leans over, examining a shorter girl with two antenna-like hairs on her head. "Slade, this one is Kole Weathers, right?"

"How should I know?"

"Don't play dumb, I saw the files on your laptop."

Slade sighed. "I knew you got into that. Yes, that one is Kole, the girl who can turn into a crystal. Why?"

"No reason."

"There's always a reason."

She just sighed. "It's a back-up plan."

_Melody._ Robin had finished his dream wandering.

"Looks like my first plan finally worked." Mel muttered. "Slade, I want you to go back to our base and move it, okay? I'll meet up with you later."

"This wouldn't have anything to do with the back-up plan, does it?" She could tell he didn't like this idea.

"Unfortunately. I'm sorry, but it's a necessary precaution."

"A precaution against what?"

_Melody! Hello!_

"Against Dick failing to sway his Titans. It's nothing major, I just overlooked how deeply I had impacted their trust in him."

He still looked suspicious. "Then I think I should stay to protect you from some grumpy teenagers."

She grinned. "Because they're so much more dangerous than grumpy Arkham escapees."

He didn't smile back. "I'm glad you acknowledged that. Now, about me staying-"

"I'm going to be captured." She stated. It was no use at this point to hide it.

_Melody! Stop ignoring me! Seriously, I have no idea how to get out of this place!_

"And you don't want me to go down with you."

She shook her head. "If this goes the way I think it'll go, I'll be able to escape. So please, move our base and I'll find you by dream."

He studied her face for a moment, then gave another long sigh. "Be careful, okay?" He said while clapping her on the shoulder. "I'm tired of burying my children."

This made her tear up slightly, though a small, bitter smile played across her lips. "They'd have a hell of a hard time killing me."

"They better. Find me as soon as possible, kid. I swear, if I didn't already go gray over my other children…" He pulled his mask on and left the cave.

She snorted in return, then returned to the dream realm, where Dick waited impatiently. "You left me here for an answer you so desperately want and then ignore me?"

"Unexpected complications arose. No, none of them had to do with your Titans, but I had to deal with them nonetheless. Now, about that answer?"

"As long as the world needs us, we'll all give our lives for it."

"And suffer for it?"

"We suffer for it anyway."

She studies him, but just for show. His dream radiated from him, its light pouring out in long rays of hope. Finally, she gave him a smile, one she had been suppressing for a long while. "Good job, Dick."

He smiled back, his dream almost blinding her. "Actually, it's Nightwing now."


	20. Chapter 19: Flying

**A/n: Sorry this took so long, my summer job finally kicked in full swing, so I've had less time to actually write. It's a little rough, so I'm reserving the right to rewrite this chapter later. Hope you enjoy!  
**

**Edit: I made it longer! That fixes everything, right?  
**

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 18.**

"_**The essence of tragedy, or even of a serious play, is the spiritual awakening, or regeneration, of the hero."**_

_**~Maxwell Anderson**_

**Chapter 19: Flying**

Nightwing. That was his name now. Mel had a gleam in her eye, one that looked like pride, as she watched him.

"Ready to go back to reality, Nightwing?"

"Reality?" _Damn, I forgot about that._

"Yes. Now, I have to warn you, it's going to be disorienting. I have to release your dreams a certain way, and, well, you've changed yours. Basically it's going to feel like you've been rebooted."

_Sounds painful._ "Okay."

She turned serious. "Nightwing, when we get back I need you to treat me like I'm a villain. Take my flute. I want your team to try to catch me, okay?"

"Will you let us?" He asked. The darkness was tugging at the corner of his vision.

She grinned. "I won't kill any of you, no. But let me tell you, I'm not the easiest person to catch."

That sounded suspiciously like a challenge. "Deal."

He allowed himself to fall back into the darkness. This time, rather than greeting him with a lullaby, it swallowed him whole.

* * *

_First, it was simply dark…_

* * *

She had been right, reawakening had felt like he had been rebooted. All the doubts he held before were not only gone, they felt like they had never existed. This was his dream. The cave was dark, lit only by the pulses of blue light Mel's flute released periodically. He recognized the dreams being released, and knew his friends would be awake soon. So he turned to face them. The cool betrayal and shock still hurt, but only because it was a sign that they didn't fully trust him at the moment.

_And let's face it,_ the little voice in his head said, _I haven't exactly been giving them a whole lot of reasons to trust me these days._

When their eyes fluttered open, he knew Mel was done restoring them. In a fluid back flip, he landed next to her and snatched the flute from her hands. There was a moment where their eyes met, and he grinned at the awe he saw in her expression. She knew he was fast, but not _this_ fast. He landed, facing his team. "What are you waiting for?" he asked, confidence returning, "Titans, Go!"

For a moment, they just blinked up at the two. Then Mel, agile as a cat, swept Nightwing's feet from under him and dove for the cave's entrance.

"Oh no you don't!" Cyborg said, and chase was on.

She paused long enough for Cyborg's cannon blast to knock out Mas, leaving Menos helpless and Cyborg trying to apologize. Starfire's over-enthusiastic green bolts caused the girl to cartwheel around. Unfortunately Bumblebee, Argent, and Herald didn't move fast enough to dodge and were out cold.

Mel landed with a mischievous grin. "Is that all-"

"We have?" Kid Flash asked, appearing in front of her, then behind her, "Hardly. Let her have it, gorgeous!"

Jinx released a huge stream of pink energy at the girl. Mel had other plans. In seconds she had Kid Flash twisted around so that Jinx's spell hit him instead of her. The rock ceiling collapsed, forming a cage of boulders around him.

"Wally! Are you okay?" Jinx cried.

His reply was slightly muffled. "I'm fine, I just need to vibrate through of a ton of rock…"

Mel was almost to the door, and there was no one near or fast enough to stop her. But just as she reached it, a thick wall of black energy covered the wall of the cave. Raven had sealed them in. She shot the empath a dirty look before dodging one of Speedy's net-arrows, which efficiently caught Beastboy as he tried to creep up on Mel from behind.

"This room is too crowded! Just focus on capturing her!" But his voice was drowned out as Thunder and Lightning shot at Mel simultaneously, blasts she redirected easily so that they hit each other. She had just enough time to land and push off again before Argent sent a giant fist her way, knocking out Gnarrk instead. Starfire started shooting bolts at her again. Mel dove behind a disoriented Kole, who instinctively changed into her crystal form when she saw the green energy heading straight for her. Mel flipped over to the side, and Star's bolt amplified and hit every Titan in the cave.

Mel took a deep breath, only to drop to the ground in order to dodge Hotspot's return fire. And the cycle began again.

"Stop using your powers!" Nightwing yelled for the fifth time. They kept on hitting each other like this, the Titans would wipe themselves out for her.

After about half an hour, Mel was dodging lazily as they continued to throw everything they had at her. Though this was inefficient, and obviously not working, Nightwing was impressed that each Titan could bounce back this many times.

There was a knock. Nightwing looked at Mel, who rolled her eyes. "Timeout!" She shouted, and the exhausted Titans following her were too surprised to do anything other than obey.

Nightwing positioned himself in front of the door, and nodded for Raven open it, revealing Jason and Rose. "We heard that you might need back up."

"Thank god." Speedy said, collapsing in the corner. The others seemed to feel the same, leaving only Raven blocking the door and Nightwing, Robin, and Ravager standing.

Mel looked like she was trying to calculate how long she could hold off against the remaining three combat-specialists. From the look on her face, not long.

"What's the plan, Dick?" Robin asked.

"Nightwing." He corrected almost absent-mindedly. "And there is no plan. Catch her."

And they were off. Mel back flipped into the injured Titans, running at full speed, apparently searching for someone. Rose got there first. "What's the matter, sis? Afraid of a little sparring?"

She received a kick to the shoulder for this, and Mel, using the force backward the kick generated, launched a shoulder into Jason's abdomen. Nightwing took over after her. It was clear now, from the glancing and ducking, that Mel was looking for someone specific. He leaped, landing in front of her. Every blow he threw she dodged, somehow managing to weave through them, getting past him.

"No fair," Jason wheezed, "She totally didn't have any issues with hurting us."

He was ignored as Mel slipped by. Rose cut off her path of escape for a moment, only to have Mel use her as a vault to flip over.

All at once, Mel stopped, and the three ran past. Nightwing slid to a stop and launched in the other direction, only to find Mel in the grip of a small crystalline arm. Kole smiled triumphantly. "Gotcha."

And for the hundredth time that night, Mel surprised them. She kissed the shorter girl on the forehead, whispering something in her ear before Jason took advantage of the pause and threw a small device that sent electric pulse that knocked her out. Kole stood with a look of confusion plastered across her face.

"What did she say?" Nightwing asked.

Kole shook herself out of her daze. "She said 'Pray you never have to use this.'"

* * *

It only took a few minutes to add the sky-blue bird to the chest, though it had taken a little longer to decide on the design. As Dick stepped out into the night in his new suit, he realized that he was also stepping out of Bruce's shadow.

Who knew, maybe that had been his goal all along.

* * *

The media didn't pause, not even for the end of the world. One of his first acts as Nightwing was holding a press conference with footage from the cave (how Cyborg's security cameras escaped destruction in the fire, he would never know). The tape was about to end, and he prepared himself for the barrage of questions. He had gone over this a thousand times with Cyborg, but that didn't change the fact that if he screwed this up all his friends would end up paying.

_This is your dream, Dick_, Mel's cool voice said in his mind, _with it, you can change the world._

_I hope so, Mel._

At the podium, he was uncomfortably aware that many in the crowd were trying to decipher who he was. This was the first time he had stepped out into public in his Nightwing suit, and he had since given up on finding time to gel his hair into their normal spikes.

The camera crew signaled him. He would be on in three… two… one…

As expected, the questions came all at once. He raised his hands. "Okay, okay, calm down a little. I am Nightwing, the former Robin. I have since passed the title completely over to Gotham's Robin. Now, I promise to answer all of your questions to the best of my ability if you'd kindly slow down to a few questions per second."

"Nightwing, what has been done with the terrorist, Melody?" One reporter asked.

"She is being held in a containment unit that prevents dimensional distortion. It appears that she lost most of her power when we took her flute away, but just in case we have her under constant surveillance."

"So you aren't planning on handing her over to the federal government?"

"No." Another flurry of questions ensued, which caused him hold up a hand for silence again. "Melody was the fiancé to one of our own, one who died to prevent the mess Trigon made from happening again. She has since calmed down in our custody, and I fear that if we transfer her, she might go through another episode."

The explanation sounded undesirable enough to satisfy most of the reporters, but a few more questions about Mel were thrown at him, including: "Are the rumors about your love affair valid?"

_Is that what they thought was going on?_ He glanced at Starfire. The alien was watching him from a distance, as she had been for the past few days. He hoped _she_ hadn't thought so as well. "On the matter of Melody, all I can say is that she was a friend in need of help, and she will be treated as such."

A few more persistent questions on Mel were launched, all, interestingly enough, from gossip tabs. He ignored them for a bigger question. "Are the rumors that the Teen Titans are disbanding true?"

"Not exactly." To his relief, all other questions died around this. "Instead of completely disbanding the Titans, we plan on focusing some of our resources on training teenage super heroes to defend themselves and others. Also, from now on we will be going by the Titans alone." At this he gave a wry smile. "Not all of us will be teenagers."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Well, after Jericho's death and Mel's break down, the hero community realized that we need a better support system for our younger heroes. The Titans were a good start, but physical training alone isn't enough to help a hero grow. Starting next month a training center for teenage heroes will open, one that we plan on using to invite all young heroes to use as refuge. It will have a staffed psychology ward on call, a hospital, and lab to address all issues they may need help sorting out. Think of it as the beginning of a hero academy."

Wrong word to use for it, he realized too late.

"How do you qualify to enter this Academy?"

"Is there an age limit?"

"Do you need to be metahuman?"

"Let me retract that, it isn't so much of an academy as it is a safehouse." Nightwing said quickly. "We have no intention of being an institution. We merely plan on better equipping our heroes' minds for their jobs."

The questions went on and on, but he felt he had covered all that truly needed to be covered.

"Thank you for your time-"

"Did you answer it?" A familiar voice asked. Chloe Kettering stood wearing a dark red coat. She wasn't working, there were no cameras for her, meaning this was all for dramatic effect.

"Answer what?" Nightwing asked.

"Mel's question." The woman said, her eyes cold as her tone. "Did you answer it?"

"Yes."

"And what was your answer?"

This is what Mel prepared him for. He knew that if Mel hadn't have asked it, Kettering would, or some other newscaster would, or maybe even a real villain would, and, had he not known, the Titans would have undoubtedly, irrevocably fallen. But Mel had asked, and, though it took too long, he had come up with the answer that he could feel rising out of his throat.

"I answered yes. The Titans were founded on a bond between heroes. We face death and worse every day for one reason: we will not bow our head before corruption and evil. We will not ignore the injustice of the world, nor will we tolerate its influence over the lives of innocent people. We are young, and we may be asked to sacrifice much more than anyone should ever ask us to sacrifice, but what keeps us going is that we all believe that we make a difference, that we make this world a better, safer place. This is our world, our lives, and we will fight for it to the end." He allowed himself a smile and a look at Star. "That, and, well, we have each other, no matter what."

Under the barrage of new questions the press fired at him in response to his speech, Dick almost thought he heard her laugh.

_Stand by those words, Nightwing,_ he thought he heard her say, _your world will rely on them._

Kettering merely walked away, her red coat swishing decisively. He had a feeling that she wasn't done with them.

* * *

The Titan's temporary base was alive with laughter. The entire team was here, drinking punch and eating some of Cyborg's waffles in celebration of their latest total victory. Several Titans raised their glass to him as he walked past, and he smiled back to each. Someone slapped his back.

"Dick, there you are. Not busy are you? Don't answer that, I know you're always busy, but pretend for at least one night you aren't," Jason said. His eyes were on Ravager, who was eyeing him back playfully. "Who is she and can I have her number?"

Nightwing laughed. "Meet her father first, Jay. It might save your life."

He raised an eyebrow. "Who's her father?"

"Slade."

Jason whistled. "I like her more already. Wish me luck." He ran a hand through his hair and started to walk over to her.

"You're going to let him walk into that on his own?" Cyborg asked dryly from behind. Beastboy and Starfire had followed him.

"He can take care of himself. Hopefully." He wanted to talk with Star alone, to hug her and kiss her and hold her, but right now she just hung back shyly. "Where's Raven?"

Beastboy shrugged, looking put out. "She left after the battle. Told me to tell you guys not to wait for her. I think she went to Azarath."

"These things take time. I'm sure Raven will be able to work it out." He said. Beastboy shrugged again. "Do we have any way of contacting her?"

"She took her communicator, but she doesn't want me calling constantly." The changling said, blushing slightly.

Nightwing smiled. "Good."

Cyborg watched them both impassively. "So, what now, Nightwing? Do you have a plan for us?"

"I'm here, if you'll still have me."

And for this, Star hugged him. "We'll always have you, friend."

Cyborg and Beastboy smiled.

"What would we do with out you?"

* * *

Things were falling together perfectly. He could feel it in his soul and see it spread before him, his dream was rising once again. He gave one final glance backward before he shut the door to the basement of the building behind him. He had to put the high he got from flying on hold, he had other business to take care of. Herald nodded acknowledgement as Nightwing passed him.

"How is she?"

"She doesn't talk much." Herald replied. "Hasn't activated her cuffs once. I think she's subdued."

"I'm going to talk with her," he said, "Could you give us a moment?"

"Sure thing, boss."

The room buzzed with computer scanners that monitored her actions and movements, assessing how much of a threat each were. She had special cuffs on that would cover her in an instant with a metal jacket that effectively stopped all movement. She sat at a single table in the relatively bare room, her dark wavy hair falling to obscure her face.

When it came to securing Melody, The League had taken no chances and spared no expense. Nightwing walked in, and sat opposite to her. She raised her head to look at him.

"What now, Mel?"

Her blue eyes were bloodshot as they gave him a confused look. "Why are you asking me?"

"This was your plan, wasn't it? And I'm willing to bet it isn't over."

She shook the hair out of her face, refusing to meet his gaze. "No, that was pretty much the end of this plan."

"So there's another?"

"No need to jump to conclusions, Nightwing." He raised an eyebrow, making her sigh and roll her eyes. "Fine, I did set up a few failsafes in case this plan deteriorates in the future."

"Do you think it's going to?"

"I hope not," she said in a tone that said she was pretty sure it would.

It set him on edge, but he knew that all their worries were speculative when it came to what has yet to happen. So instead, he moved on to the second reason for his visit. "What are we going to do with you? The government has been very insistent that I hand you over. They don't like it when one of us threatens the entire human race, and they especially didn't appreciate the anarchy you inspired."

"You don't have to worry about it. My people, we have our own court system. I'm actually surprised they haven't come for me already." She bit her lower lip.

He studied her, but she merely looked tired. "Is that a good thing?"

She shrugged. "Maybe. I'm not looking forward to their justice, but I know I earned it."

Another thing he wanted to delve into but couldn't. This girl… "Well, now that that's out of the way, how are you holding up?"

"I've been better."

"I'm here to talk if you need to. About Joe, about anything. We're friends now."

Mel gave him a startled look, but, relaxing out of the stiff pose she held earlier, seemed to accept this. She was staring at the flaws on the surface of the metal table, fighting to keep composure. "There's a poet I admire. I enjoyed practically all of his work, so one day I set out to talk with him. When I finally found him, we sat and talked most of the night. I don't remember why I asked, but at some point I asked him about life. And for a long moment he didn't answer me, he just stared ahead at the people walking by. I thought I lost him for a moment, that he had drifted away on a train of thought, but he came back and whispered, 'It goes on.'"

Nightwing waited, but she made no move to continue. "That's it?"

"I think it's fitting to end with a story, don't you?" There was the girl he remembered. "Remember those words in the coming months," she said, looking over his shoulder. "It looks like my ride's here."

He turned around. Three men in elaborate white robes stood outside of the cell door, the man in the middle resembling Mel a little.

"Do me a favor, Dick," she said. She had a strange look on her face, one that looked like fear. "Can you tell Slade that it might take longer than I thought it would?"

Behind him, the door slid open. "We're here to arrest Melody."

"Hi to you, too, Dad." She sounded bitter now.

The man give her a stern look. "We don't have time for this, Melody. You made sure of that."

Nightwing looked between the two, uncertain of what to do. Mel saw this. "Don't worry, Dick, I'm supposed to go with them. It's the only way this works out."

"What works out? I thought you said you were done?"

Standing, she doesn't answer as she joins the men. He grabs her arm, making her look at him. "Will you be back?"

Her dark blue eyes filled with a deep sorrow. "You better hope not, Dick. If I do, it's not a good sign." She breaks eye contact, turning to follow her father. "It never is."

In a flash of light, she's gone.


	21. Chapter 20: It Goes On

**Disclaimer: See Chapter 19.**

_**"Stories never really end...even if the books like to pretend they do. Stories always go on. They don't end on the last page, any more than they begin on the first page."  
~Cornelia Funke**_

**Chapter 20: It Goes On**

Nightwing felt the sun beating down on his back, and it, like everything else, felt impossibly good. Nothing could ruin today, he thought as the final touches were added to the giant T-shaped tower. They had resurrected the original, though in the process nearly quadrupled it in size which had made it necessary to expand the actual island as well. This would be the Central Titan's Tower, where all new heroes would come for mental and physical training. He knew that he had said he didn't want to be in charge of an academy, but seeing this building…

His heart swelled as the Titans raced across the lawn, unable to contain themselves any further. But the feeling died when he found himself looking for a glint of gold, or a flash of purple over white amongst the dozens of different colored costumes. He probably always would. His eyes fell on the huge metal sign at the Tower's base.

**In loving memory of Joseph "Jericho" Wilson.**

There was a familiar whoosh. "Friend Robin- Nightwing?"

"Star? Aren't you going to join them?" They hadn't really spoken to one another since the night they told each other their reason for joining the Titans. He didn't really know how to ask her about how she felt, and he was avoiding at all costs mentioning Mel to her. Some nights he caught her eyes on him, but she always looked away when he noticed.

"I would like to, but we have other matters to speak of."

_Uh oh_. "Please tell me you don't believe that Mel and I- that we- It wasn't like that."

"I know," she said, a finger over his lips. "You told me before."

He was stunned. Even after all this, she trusted him. His mind was reeling at the thought. He said her name again, softer this time. "Star."

"We have each other," she said, green eyes warm, "do we not?"

He pulled her into a deep kiss. "Always."

_Don't make promises you can't keep._ A cool voice said in his head. He made up his mind.

_I intend to keep this one._ He dropped to one knee. "Starfire, will you marry me?"

* * *

Mel had left them one hell of a mess. Bruce sent in a tired report from Gotham, the Arkham escapees seemed to have resumed their usual madness with surprisingly little friction between their separate plans. He suspected Mel had something to do with that. Jason had gone home the day after Mel left, though he had been sending texts to Nightwing asking about Rose.

Clark had also been in touch with him. The teenage superhero ban had been taken off the table for now, but that didn't mean they were back up to their former popularity. There was still discussion on what to do, but apparently they were content with letting him try his way before bringing it back up in legislation. No pressure.

Clark had also wanted to discuss the possibility of the League sending down heroes for classes, something Nightwing welcomed reluctantly. He knew that it would be a great opportunity, but they didn't always see eye to eye with the League. The last thing he wanted was for them to pull the "we're the adults here" card on him and attempt to take over operations.

Speaking of classes, within a week dozens of would be heroes had flocked to the Central Tower, a place everyone had taken to calling The Jericho, all demanding to be accepted. Most were turned away, but the more persistent and promising ones were taken in. Somewhere along the line the newbies started following their favorite heroes, and, to Nightwing's surprise, those heroes started teaching them what they knew. Beastboy had started calling them "apprentices."

How the hell did he plan on having a wedding in all this madness?

These were the thoughts that plagued Nightwing's mind as he stared at his computer screen, attempting to formulate his next move. A special alert he had set up earlier blinked on screen. It was about time Slade showed up.

He got up, stretching the kinks in his legs, extremely conscious of the gold stone swinging around his neck on a chain. Every time he felt it, he smiled. She had said yes.

The older man had put his mask back on. He stood just inside the single spotlight with his arms crossed behind his back, head bowed as he paid his respects to his youngest son. Nightwing leaned by the cave's entrance, waiting for him to finish. After a few minutes, Slade finally spoke without looking away from the headstone. "Hello, Nightwing. Why don't we stop pretending to ignore each other."

"Oh, I was in no way ignoring you."

"You should probably level up your security. It was surprisingly easy to walk in."

"I did, but I'm leaving the basement relatively low for those who want to, say, visit their children."

Slade's eye narrowed under his mask. "So am I to understand that Melody is no longer here?"

"Her father came to take her a few days ago."

"I see." His words were clipped.

"She told me to tell you that it might take her longer than she expected."

"She knows I'm not a patient man. Did she say anything else?"

"That I should hope she never comes back." He could see the frown under Slade's mask before he turns back to his son's grave.

"Is that so?"

"That's all I managed to get out of her before she was whisked away." There was a long pause as both men thought.

"So, Nightwing, have you taken an apprentice yet?"

"No."

"May I recommend my daughter? Her mother trained her to fight, but she is in no way at the level of skill required by her chosen career."

"What's in it for you?"

"Is it so hard to believe that I look out for my children?" They both looked at the headstone. "You don't need to answer that. Let's leave it at 'I would rather not bury another.'"

Nightwing thought about it. "I'll do it."

"Thank you." Slade turned to leave. "And please inform Todd that I'm watching his every movement. She is my daughter, after all."

Nightwing groaned. His younger brother was in so much trouble.

* * *

The Azarathian night sky would take away anyone's breath.

"Raven."

The flagstones under her feet cracked. "Mother."

"The one you called Beastboy, he called again."

Raven sighed.

"The half-robot man was with him, and so was the red-haired alien. They are worried about you."

"I know, but this is something they can't help me with."

"Why not? They helped you before."

"This time was different." Raven was struggling to keep her emotions in check. Too late, Arella realized that she couldn't. The statues around them crumbled and the ground shook. Raven continued, her guilt spilling out. "This time he snuck by me and killed one of my friends."

Arella gathered her daughter into her arms. She was afraid, she had always been afraid of this half-demon child she had brought into the world, but that did not mean she was not also a mother. "I know."

"How did I miss him? I tried to send him away, and he killed Joe, in front of me. How?" She was sobbing now.

"Shh."

"How can I ever make that up?"

Arella could not find the words that would her daughter's pain go away, so she simply cried with her.

* * *

"Melody." From her sister's tone, she knew she was in trouble.

"Harmony." Her sister grabbed her and pulled her into a hug.

"You just couldn't listen to me, could you? Did her really mean more to you than I do?"

"No one means more to me," she said, hugging her twin back fiercely, "but he came close."

"What are you going to do? You aren't going to let them execute you, are you?"

"No." Melody let her older sister go. She was focused on her inner world of strands. "My story does not end here."

Harmony watched her with uncertain eyes. She had never been able to not read her sister before. "I'm sorry you lost him."

"Yeah, me too."

She hesitated. "Do you regret it?"

Mel looked at her, eyes filled with some indescribable emotion. "Do I regret Joe? No. And I never will."

Far away, she could hear the strands of his continuity calling her, whispering their stories into the void that separates all universes. One call trumps them all:

"Titans, GO!"

* * *

**A/n: This is the final chapter, guys. But don't worry, I have the sequel in planning as I post this. It might take a week or so, but I should have it posted soon. Thanks for the views and the reviews! Until next time.**

**~Wallthorn  
**


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